


The Dragon of Fate Rises

by KibaFenrisulfur



Series: Fire Emblem AU [1]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Not Related, Canon-Typical Violence, Dragon My Unit | Kamui | Corrin, F/F, Female My Unit | Kamui | Corrin, Female Protagonist, Gen, Multi, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-27
Updated: 2019-02-01
Packaged: 2019-10-17 17:53:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 35,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17565209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KibaFenrisulfur/pseuds/KibaFenrisulfur
Summary: The kingdoms of Hoshido and Nohr have been on the edge of war for more than a decade. A Princess, imprisoned in Nohr, is aware of a much more dangerous threat lurking in the shadows. Now this young woman with connections to both kingdoms will decide the fates of both kingdoms. Will her decision save the kingdoms or will it lead only to the ruin of the kingdoms?





	1. Chapter 1: A Princess Lives

**Author's Note:**

> Alternate Universe: Mikoto escaped with her two young girls. These two young women have spent the last several years gathering allies and information on their father. This is their story to try and change their fate and restore peace to their lands.

_Two armies charge towards one another across a field of green. The armies clash and cries of pain follow as warriors begin to fall, staining the green grass red. A male with dark blonde hair, wearing gold and black armor sits atop an armored warhorse and watches as the two armies clash a perpetual frown marking his features . A samurai with red armor charges forward as he leads the army across the plains. He leaps over enemies performing a slight spin, using three of them as springboards until he lands in a slight clearing between his enemies. He swings his sword in an arc as lightning dances off the blade and knocks the enemies around him prone._

_The samurai stands and gazes up at the man on the warhorse as his blade keeps the foot soldiers at bay. He stands proudly and calls out, “Nohrian general! You face the high prince of Hoshido, Ryoma! I challenge you to single combat!” The man on the warhorse gazes down at Ryoma calmly as his frown deepens._

_“I will accept your challenge, ‘high prince.’ But I’m no general. I am crown prince Xander of Nohr!” the rider yells as he draws his blade from its scabbard. The unsheathed blade sparks with a dark energy and Xander urges his mount forward. He strikes down the warriors who have passed by Ryoma and charges the red and white clad man. The two glowing blades strike each other and a wave of black and green energy expands outwards from the two as it knocks down friends and foes alike._

_A female warrior runs across a bridge from behind the Hoshidan army and pauses with an expression of deep sadness and horror. She watches in terror as the two men prepare to strike each other again and sprints forward, ignoring the screams of a red haired woman behind her. The red eyed woman runs between the two blades and screams in pain as they slice into her torso and back, cutting through her armor with ease. The two watch in horror as the woman slowly crumples to the ground between them. Several heart twisting, screams pierce the air as the red eyed woman falls to her hands and knees, her blood soaking into the ground beneath her. The woman doesn't move again as things fade to black around her._

_When things come back into focus and she can see once more, she stands in front of a woman with long, blue hair who is gasping for each breath she struggles to pull into her body. The blue haired woman struggles to lift her head and upper body to face the woman as blood red eyes gaze at golden, amber ones. The woman takes a shaky breath and smiles weakly as her body is quickly consumed by blue light._

_“Can I see you smile for me one last time?” the woman speaks softly as tears gather in her eyes. Her voice is weak and pain filled as she speaks to the red-eyed woman in front of her. “One more smile…before I go.” The woman’s voice grows weaker with her words and tears spill from her right eye and down her cheek. The red-eyed woman finds a smile of pain and grief forming on her lips as she internally screams in denial, but doesn’t fully understand why this woman’s death has such an effect on her being or why it makes the very core of her being wail in despair._

_The blue haired woman smiles almost happily as she reaches towards the other woman when she sees the smile that has come to the red eyed woman’s lips. She has almost been completely consumed by the blue light as she speaks weakly, “That’s right… Lovely…” She gasps for her final breath and tears fall from both eyes moments before she is completely consumed by the light._

_The red eyed woman falls to her knees as she hugs herself feeling tears roll down her cheeks as she screams in despair, anger, pain, and grief. ‘Why?! Why did she have to die?!’ The woman thinks as she feels her throat ache from the force of her scream. ‘Would… would things have been different if I had chosen Nohr? Would she, Elise, and Xander be alive if I had chosen differently?’ Confusion races through the woman as she doesn’t understand where these thoughts are coming from and the area around her quickly fades to black._

Deep inside the country of Nohr in the Northern Citadel, a red eyed woman wakes with a start in her bed as she sits up quickly and releases a wordless cry of grief and confusion. Her hand is outstretched into the darkness and she holds it there as she takes quick, shaky breathes. She’s covered in a sheen of sweat and whimpers into the darkness as she pulls her legs into her chest. A cloaked woman slowly approaches her from the shadows and hugs the other woman. The red eyed woman whimpers and leans into the toned, tan arms of the cloaked woman.

“Shhhh… It’s okay sister. It was just another dream,” the woman murmurs soothingly into the pointed ears of the red eyed woman as she holds her. The red eyed woman nods gently in understanding, but the tears don’t stop as they fall onto the dark red sheets of the bed and darken the color further. The cloaked woman hums softly and the red eyed woman’s eyes close after a few moments as she slips into a state between sleep and being awake.

“Time to get up, Lady Kiba!” a chipper voice calls as the woman frowns from the sound of the new voice. She groans softly and her red eyes slowly flutter open to gaze up at the blue and pale blonde haired maids who look down at her.

“Hey, wake up Lady Kiba! Up and at ‘em!” the blonde maid calls as she shakes the woman. The woman groans and sits up as she looks at the four people in her room still half asleep.

“Listen well Princess and get up. You have practice today after all,” a gray haired old veteran says as he stands at the head of the bed Kiba is laying in. His armor is old and well made as it is only slightly damaged despite having seen several fierce battles as told by the scar on the left side of his grim, kind face.

“I have taken the liberty of readying your armor, and, er, pounding out the dents. Your brother is quite the fierce opponent, is he not?” a gray haired butler says as he gently grips his chin with a gauntleted hand. The red eyed woman, Kiba, looks around at the four before looking outside and groaning as she falls back onto her bed when she sees it’s still dark outside.

“Just… five more… minutes,” she murmurs tiredly as her eyes close again. Her breathing begins to even out as the two maids look at each other before the blue haired one sighs.

“Guess we’re going to do this the hard way then. Felicia, would you please assist me?” the blue haired maid looks at the resting Kiba in front of her as she speaks. Felicia, the blonde maid, smiles as she turns towards the blue haired maid.

“Sure thing!” Felicia says as she nods quickly. The blue haired maid and Felicia place a hand on either side of Kiba’s head before natural born ice magic rushes out of their hands and onto Kiba’s neck then down her back.

“Waauuuugh! Cold, cold, cold,” Kiba sits up and shivers before hugging herself already feeling the ice begin to melt. She shivers and swings her legs off the bed to glare almost thankfully at the blue haired maid. “Alright Flora, I’m awake now. Totally awake.” Kiba shivers again and smiles as Flora smirks lightly at the burgundy haired woman in front of her.

“That’s how we deal with slugabeds in the Ice Tribe!” Flora declares almost proudly as she smiles slightly towards Kiba. Kiba sighs softly and smiles fondly at Flora as she reaches behind her head and rubs her neck to make the ice melt a bit faster.

“Yes, I’m well aware of that Flora,” Kiba frowns a bit as she speaks, but is soon smiling again. “I’m glad you woke me though…. I do not wish to see if those dreams would have returned…” Kiba trails off and the gray haired butler moves forward with a slight frown.

“Interesting. Do tell-what kind of dream was it?” the man’s voice is respectful. He has a natural frown on his lips despite not being disappointed or frustrated. Kiba looks uncertain before shaking her head gently in decisiveness as she comes to a decision to not say anything about the dreams.

“Ah, Lady Kiba, perhaps we can speak about your dream another time?” Flora interrupts as Kiba takes a breath to answer her butler. “I’m sure your brother, Prince Xander, would be unhappy if you kept him waiting to talk to Jakob about a dream after all.” Kiba’s eyes widen in excitement and she nods quickly in agreement. She throws the sheets she had covering her lower body off and stands not caring that Jakob and the old veteran are inside the room with an unobstructed view of her in a loose night shirt and boxers.

“You are right, Flora. Jakob, Gunter please leave, so that I may get ready for today,” Kiba speaks kindly as she moves towards her closet not noticing how all four people stare at her in a state of silent surprise. Kiba opens her closet and pauses as she looks back at the four having not received a response from them. “Is something the matter with you four? I said to leave me to get dressed,” Kiba narrows her eyes a bit as she gazes at the four curiously.

“Lady Kiba… Are you aware of the bruise on your back?” the veteran speaks cautiously as he stares at Kiba’s exposed back. Kiba looks puzzled and turns herself around in front of a full length mirror to stare in mild surprise at the way her shirt has been ripped open from the collar to the middle of her back. On the exposed skin is a bruise that runs from her left shoulder to her right hip. Kiba stares for only a few moments before grasping the edge of her shirt of pulling it over her head as all eyes focus on the back of her neck and shoulders. The other four in the room suck in sharp breaths as they stare at the ugly, yellowing bruises along the girl’s back.

 _‘What the Hell is this?’_ Kiba thinks as she runs her fingers over the bruises. She feels nothing more than a slight tingle of pain and frowns at the feeling. She sighs and shakes her head in confusion as she gazes at her back. Kiba turns around to face the mirror and a low growl of irritation escapes as she sees the another ugly bruise on her torso that appears much fresher than the one on her back. This bruise runs from her right shoulder to her left hip, yet doesn’t cause any discomfort despite how fresh it appears.

“Make sure I have a shirt under my armor that will hide and cushion these bruises with a high collar around my throat, Jakob. The shirt must be able to be worn with my armor without drawing attention to itself, so it won’t make my siblings suspicious about why I’m wearing such a shirt. You know we cannot allow my brothers or sisters to see these bruises. They have enough to worry about without my mysterious bruises being added to the list,” Kiba speaks in a no nonsense voice as she turns towards Jakob and the others. Jakob bows respectfully before straightening as the veteran starts towards the door now that Kiba has given her orders on how to deal with this.

“As you wish, Lady Kiba,” Jakob smiles at his lady and straightens before moving towards her closet to find an acceptable shirt. Flora and Felicia move to follow Kiba as she sits in front of her vanity and runs a hand through her dark burgundy hair. Flora sighs softly and grabs a brush. She starts to brush through Kiba’s hair to make it a bit more manageable even though the ends continuously curl by themselves.

“Thank you, Flora. You and Felicia can leave now. I’ll be fine finishing up on my own now,” Kiba stands and sighs as she speaks kindly to the two maids. Flora and Felicia share a worried look before bowing slightly and hurrying out of the room. As Flora closes the doors behind her, Kiba moves to her bed and grabs the long sleeved black shirt laid out for her. She sighs softly once she’s pulled the soft, slightly padded fabric onto her bruised form and runs a hand over it to smooth down the fabric against her well-built frame. She then turns her attention to her armor, which is mostly an off white color with pieces of gray and black for a more personal touch, before she starts to slip into it. She smiles gently as she pulls her hair out of the way of the chest piece and thinks about how happy her siblings were when they gave her the armor as a gift for her eighteenth birthday, three years ago.

Kiba steps in front of her mirror and examines the way the armor clings to her form perfectly before turning her back towards the mirror. She sighs softly and reaches behind her as she gently presses against the top piece of the plates that run down her spine. Kiba grunts softly as the plates meld against her spine before melding with the rest of her armor to create a single seamless piece. She smiles softly as she grabs the lilac cape and fastens it to her armor. She starts to hum softly, but stops abruptly as she freezes up and begins to frown. Bits and pieces of the dreams she had after those that caused her to wake filter into her mind, causing her to suck in a sharp breath.

Kiba sees herself running from her older brother, Xander, and crying out in pain as he strikes her in the back in the same place she now has a bruise. She sees herself rolling away and fleeing again only to be struck by invisible enemies in the same places that she saw the other bruises on her body. She comes to a lake and is struck from behind making her stumble forward. She sees herself turn around and then chokes on a cry as the blue haired woman from her earlier dream begins to choke the life out of her.  Kiba shakes her head to dispel the cobwebs of the vision and takes another shaky breath. A soft gentle sigh passes her lips as she moves to sit on a chair to finish strapping on the leg pieces of her armor. She smiles once they’re secured and stands, leaving her feet bare and exposed to the elements.

Kiba had never liked wearing shoes or socks for that matter, as she claimed it felt odd to not be able to feel the ground beneath her feet. When Gunter, the veteran and her most common sparring partner, first arrived at her home in the Northern Fortress, he had tried to make the burgundy haired woman wear the boots that went with the training armor she had at the time. However, he quickly realized that Kiba was much slower and unsure of her movements when she was wearing anything over her feet. He soon adapted his training to play to the the young woman’s unique strength, much to Kiba’s thankfulness, and she quickly improved in her fighting and agility afterwards.

Kiba smiles softly at the memories of her younger days before a soft sigh escapes her again. She leans back in her chair and attempts to clear her mind from less pleasant thoughts that consist of her spending hours upon hours alone in the fortress and a dark room where chains rattle against a wall. She places a hand on her face and rubs it gently as she focuses her mind away from the event several years ago when the four people, that actually were supposed to stay in the castle with her, left to go on errands in town. Her frown deepens as she forces her thoughts away from the dark room. She instead thinks of how Jakob rushes off with Felicia every few months and how Gunter and Flora are left to do the daily tasks. Kiba sighs as she remembers wandering the halls for a bit before she became bored and headed to the library on the rare occasions that this occurred. She hums softly and remembers how, when the library failed to distract, she would spent the rest of the day running around the fortress walls and inner courtyards. When the four would finally return, they usually found Kiba sound asleep at the top of one of the few sakura trees that were in Nohr. It would take the four, several minutes to get her out of the tree and another hour for the maids to remove the armor from the exhausted woman. Kiba shakes her head to clear away the memories and stands feeling more centered now that her mind is cleared of the disturbing dreams and visions. She grabs a lavender choker from on top of her dresser and secures it around her neck before heading upstairs to begin her stretches.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sounds of swords clashing comes from the roof of the fortress. Kiba grunts as her bronze sword clashes against a mounted Xander’s bronze sword again. She hisses quietly as her bare feet slide backwards along the stone from the force of Xander’s blow. She leaps backwards to avoid another attack and kneels a few paces away from Xander as she takes quick, shallow breaths to calm her racing heart. Xander frowns as he gazes down at Kiba looking frustrated at how the mock battle is going against his sister.

Xander sits tall in his black and gold plated armor as he looks down from his similarly armored mount. The gold and black pieces are interrupted by a piece of royal purple in the center. The gloves that cover his hands are claw-like as each finger tip ends in a point. Kiba muses at how they look very much like her own armored gloves except the tips of her pointed gloves end in a splash of blood red. The red is barely noticeable as Kiba had made them specifically so that they would appear black at first glance. She had asked Gunter to help her make them after she received the armor she wears now. She had always loved the way that Xander’s armored gloves looked and had sworn to make herself a special pair if she ever received a set of armor for herself.

“That’s our sister for you. You won’t beat the strongest knight in Nohr by sleeping all day, Kiba,” Leo, another short haired blonde and brother of Xander, speaks calmly, with a hint of disapproval in his voice, as he stands a bit off to the side of the battle field. Kiba frowns as she acknowledges the boy’s words and thinks about how to overcome her mounted brother.

“Leo is right sister. You are a princess of Nohr after all. Now pick up your sword and try again,” Xander speaks calmly with a slight frown on his face. Kiba frowns and looks as if she is about to speak, but Xander continues before she can open her mouth. “We train like this so that we can defend ourselves from our enemies. Father has been tracking your progress. If you can’t land a hit on me today… he may never permit you to leave the Northern Fortress. Ever,” Xander looks almost upset as he speaks. Kiba’s jaw tenses at the news and her eyes narrow towards her older brother. “Motivated now are we? Then use that fire and try again, else you will only see the outside world from your window here in the Northern Citadel,” Xander narrows his eyes in turn as his mount rears into the air during his little speech to his sister. “Now come at me and prove that all my time spent training you has not been in vain!”

Kiba keeps her jaw tensed and watches Xander carefully before darting forward. She leaps towards Xander and spins in the air as she brings her sword crashing down against Xander’s when he moves to block her strike. She manages to plant her feet on the ground and springs backwards to avoid a blow to her chest before darting back in to strike at his right side away from his sword. Xander grunts and twists his blade around to deflect Kiba’s strike by making the bronze sword glide off his own bronze sword. Kiba grunts and ducks from Xander’s next strike as she backflips to stand a few yards away again. She is fully aware that Xander is holding back and the irritation this causes her shows on her face as her blood red eyes narrow further. She glares at the bronze sword in Xander’s hand and growls to herself wishing he was using the legendary sword Siegfried, but only because then she could use that as an excuse of why she wasn’t winning rather than the simple fact that she was outclassed by her brother.

 _‘We’ve earned the right to see the outside world from more than just a simple window_.’ Kiba’s pupils contract as the words whisper in her ears. She tightens her grip on her sword again in response to the whisper as she focuses on Xander. She growls lowly and darts forward as she holds her arm at an angle that tells Xander she will strike from the left. She watches as Xander frowns and moves to block the blow as a smirk graces her lips. A few moments before Kiba is within Xander’s ranger she drops her blade and watches Xander’s shocked expression with satisfaction as she catches the blade in her right hand. Without wasting a second she flicks her wrist upwards and scores a hit on Xander’s right side before leaping upwards as she avoids the retaliation strike sent her way. She spins in the air and lashes out at Xander’s unprotected back scoring another hit before landing and rolling to the left to move out of his reach again. She springs back to her feet as she breathes easier now and Xander almost smiles despite his surprise at Kiba’s quick and successful strikes.

Kiba tightens her grip on her blade once more and darts forward. She leaps into the air a few feet away from Xander and performs a tight spin before using the added momentum to swings her blade at Xander once more. This time the blade strikes the lion shield on Xander’s right side. Had this been an actual battle Xander could have been seriously hurt from the blow, but is left unharmed for the most part as Kiba keeps her strength in check. However, the force of the strike does cause Xander to drop his blade as Kiba back flips away to stand a few yards away as she pants from the maneuver. Sweat glistens on her forehead and neck as she gazes at a calm, collected, and sweat free Xander. Kiba huffs in frustration before a happy smile comes to her lips at having successfully disarmed her brother. Xander smiles proudly as he dismounts from Alastor, his black armored warhorse.

“Well done, Kiba. You’re getting stronger every day,” Xander speaks honestly with a soft smile as he makes his way over to Kiba and Leo. Kiba smiles a bit as she wipes the sweat from her brow while wishing she could ask Flora or Felicia to freeze her neck and back to help her cool off some more as she feels oddly hot despite the cold air around them. She releases a slow breath as it condenses in front of her making her smile a bit more.

“Thanks, Xander. I couldn’t have done it without your, uh, tough love though,” Kiba smiles as she speaks respectfully to Xander. Xander laughs gently and smiles at Kiba as he seems a bit more relaxed now that the mock battle is over.

“I disagree. I believe you have a natural talent for this. Someday, you could be the greatest warrior in all of Nohr,” Xander speaks honestly as he gazes at his sister. Kiba’s smile drops a bit and she looks at him a bit apprehensively.

“Now you’re just teasing me, Xander.”

“You know me, Kiba. I never joke about serious matters. I mean what I say,” Xander’s smile falls away as his voice becomes serious once more. “You could be the one to bring light to our kingdom so long shrouded in darkness.” Kiba’s apprehensive look fades and she smiles gently as she allows her form to finally fully relax. She nods gently and smiles at Xander gratefully for his honesty with her. Leo sighs heavily and a soft groan escapes causing Kiba to focus her gaze on him.

“Typical. You do know that true strength is more than simple swordplay, right?” Leo speaks lowly, as a small, almost disapproving, frown graces his lips. Kiba turns her head towards Leo as her face relaxes into a small smile.

“Leo, he didn’t mean--,” Kiba begins, but is then cut off by Xander.

“Calm yourself, little brother. You really are competitive to a fault. As I’ve always said, you’re a talented mage with formidable magical abilities,” Xander smiles as he turns his gaze to the younger male. Leo slides his eyes towards his older brother, the same neutral frown on his lips.

“Hmm. Well, just remember that pointy metal sticks are not the only path to power,” Leo speaks kindly and smiles as he turns his gaze back to Kiba. Kiba smiles and giggles quietly as she looks at her younger brother.

“Oh, that reminds me of something I’ve been meaning to tell you, Leo,” Kiba’s eyes sparkle as she speaks gently to Leo. Leo frowns a bit more as he looks at Kiba curiously.

“Something important enough to derail this conversation?” Leo sounds skeptical as he speaks. Kiba glances at Xander and giggles gently before looking back at Leo with a small frown of seriousness.

“Well…your collar is inside out.”

“What?!” Leo twists himself around and grabs his collar to see dark blue fabric turned towards him instead of the purple he was expecting.

“It would appear someone got dressed while still half-asleep,” Xander smiles as he speaks gently.

“Ugh! Wh-why didn’t you say something earlier?!” Leo yelps and rushes backwards to fix his collar while a light blush of embarrassment dusts his cheeks. Xander and Kiba laugh gently and smile as Leo starts to fix his collar with a grumble of embarrassment.

“Haha, sorry, Leo. But that sort of thing is what makes you so very lovable,” Xander smiles and laughs lightly again.

“Oh absolutely,” Kiba smiles with a soft laugh of her own as she speaks gently and watches Leo fix his collar. Leo huffs in embarrassment at the words of the two and finishes correcting his collar.

Kiba giggles happily and smiles not noticing the two young women walking up behind her or Xander turning his head to look behind her. She yelps gently as she’s hugged tightly by a slightly taller, light-purple haired woman who giggles gently and smiles at her. Kiba squirms a bit and bites her tongue to suppress a whimper as the bruises on her back are pressed down upon, but the look of discomfort and pain on her face doesn’t go unnoticed by the woman.

“Are you alright, Kiba? Did you get hurt at all during practice? If you did, let me know right away so I can take extra-special care of you…” the woman frowns as she looks down at the burgundy haired woman in her arms. Kiba blushes lightly and smiles reassuringly up at the woman as she suppresses her pain quickly.

“I’m perfectly fine, Camilla, as always. Thank you for your concern over my well being,” Kiba smiles as she lies easily to the woman currently hugging her. Camilla keeps her frown, but releases Kiba when she pulls away. The burgundy haired woman sighs in relief before suppressing a hiss of pain as a platinum blonde haired girl with violet highlights in her hair, latches onto her waist in a strong hug. The girl smiles and Kiba can’t stop the genuine smile of joy that graces her lips as she pats the girl’s head gently.

“I was worried about you too, Kiba!” the girl smiles and giggles as she leans into the touch on her head. Kiba laughs lightly and smiles happily at the girl as her sharp canines flash in what little light there is.

“I know, Elise. You wouldn’t visit me all the time if you didn’t care so much after all,” Kiba giggles and smiles softly at Elise.

“Heehee… Do you like it when I visit?” Elise sounds genuinely curious as she finally releases Kiba from the hug. Kiba laughs gently as her smile softens and becomes a little sad as she rubs Elise’s head affectionately.

“Of course I do Elise… I’m not allowed to leave this fortress, so visits are the only thing I have to look forward to. Looking forward to seeing any of you four is really the only thing that keeps me from being completely bored out of my mind,” Kiba speaks softly, still rubbing Elise’s head.

“Yaaay! I’m glad to hear that. Spending time with my sister makes me so happy!” Elise giggles and smiles happily before unexpectedly launching herself at Kiba. She wraps her arms around her neck in a bear hug and Kiba yelps softly from surprise and pain as she catches Elise and spins around with her. She sighs in relief and sets Elise down afterwards while still smiling gently. “I love you so much! I love you more than anything in the whole, wide world!” Kiba giggles softly and smiles at her sister gently as she controls her breathing to lessen the pain in her neck and back from the fierce hugs she’s received.

“Elise, will you please behave like the sixteen year old you are?” Leo sighs as he speaks in exasperation at his sister’s antics. Camilla shoots Leo a disapproving look before hugging Elise and giggling gently. Kiba smiles as she steps back a bit from the siblings as her gaze slips over to the horizon.

“Well, I for one think her cheer is a good complement to this gloomy kingdom, Leo,” Camilla smiles as she looks down at Elise. Elise grins up at her older sister and Kiba giggles gently at the honesty in Camilla’s voice. Kiba’s gaze returns to the group after hearing Camilla’s words and a grin appears on her face as she smiles at the two sisters and their brothers.

“Well said, Camilla. Every one of you is so dear to me. You’ve all been so patient and kind since I lost my memory… I even forget that I’m quarantined when I’m with any of you. I’m so grateful to have you all,” Kiba smiles widely as she looks at the four who each smile back at her.

“We are grateful to have you as well. But I have some—“Xander smiles and looks like he’s about to say something important, but Camilla releases Elise looking excited as she stops Xander from speaking.

“Let me tell her, Xander! We have wonderful news, Kiba! Father asked us to take you back to the capital!” Camilla speaks excitedly and a nervous frown crosses Kiba’s face.

“Really? Does that mean…” Kiba speaks uncertainly not wanting to get her hopes up in case it’s just another visit to the castle before she has to come back to her fortress of solitude.

“Yes. It means you’re finally leaving this drafty fortress. You must have been so lonely all this time, separated from the rest of the world…,” Camilla speaks gently with a closed eyed smile before her purple eyes open to gaze at Kiba. “But now you’ll be free!” Camilla keeps a small smile as she folds her arms beneath her generous bust as she subconsciously draws attention to her exposed cleavage.

A blush starts to dust Kiba’s cheeks as her eyes are drawn to the sight. She stares a bit and thinks about how the armor looks amazing on Camilla as well as how she can wear something like that and still be such a great fighter. Her eyes drift down to the golden claw like pieces of armor that hang at Camilla’s waist and the red eyed girl fights down the blush on her cheeks. She nods wordlessly and sighs in gratitude as Elise speaks and draws her attention back to the other girl.

“Isn’t that wonderful?!” Elise smiles as she speaks lightly while she stares at Kiba almost knowingly. Kiba smiles happily as her blush quickly fades and she nods before speaking a bit breathlessly from her excitement.

“It…It really is. Thanks, Elise,” Kiba smiles thankfully at the younger girl. Elise smiles and giggles gently as her dress moves with her laugh. Kiba eyes the clothing and smiles at the ruffles of the black sleeves. She looks over the dress and chuckles at the pink that lines the bottom of the dress and her eyes are drawn back to the pink bow at Elise’s throat that’s been pinned there with a white rose. “I’m so happy to finally be leaving this place… Maybe now I can join you all as a soldier, fighting for Nohr?” Kiba speaks hopefully as she smiles at the four happily.

“There will be plenty of time to discuss the details with Father. Let us prepare and then depart. The capital is a day’s journey away after all and Father expects us to be there by tomorrow morning at the very latest,” Xander speaks gently as a fond smile forms on his lips. Kiba nods and the four siblings prepare to leave, but Kiba stands still as she watches the four for a few seconds before her gaze travels to the distant horizon. A small smile forms on her lips as she stares into the distance, but it soon fades into a frown as she thinks she sees the outline of something flying through the air making a ripple through the sky. She blinks and the apparition is gone, but her frown stays in place.

“See something out there sister?” a soft voice whispers in Kiba’s ear as the cloaked woman from the previous night  lifts herself onto the roof of the tower beside Kiba. Kiba frowns and sighs softly as she shakes her head gently.

“You really shouldn’t take such a risk, little sister. If the others saw you they might attack you for fear of me being hurt. I mean you don’t exactly scream safe since you’re always wearing that cloak of yours,” Kiba shakes her head, but her lips curve upwards in an amused, fond smile. The cloaked woman laughs gently and shrugs nonchalantly at the statement. The two lapse into silence for a few moments as blood red eyes meet a matching pair of red eyes.

“I’m sure they would, but I would never let them catch me in a way such as this at least,” the woman smiles as she speaks softly. Kiba smiles gently as she nods in acknowledgement and returns her gaze to the horizon. “But I’m not here to worry about them right now. I came to check up on you and make sure you were prepared for the journey to see Father’s pawn.”

“I’m as ready as I can be, but I cannot shake this feeling of unease… Ever since I woke from that dream last night I’ve been on edge… I fear that something is going to happen soon. What will happen I cannot say, but it makes me worried that I have dreamed of death every night so far this week… It makes my blood stir with unease,” Kiba murmurs softly as she keeps her gaze on the horizon. Kiba tilts her head only slightly as she hears the other woman sigh and then feels a comforting hand on the small of her back.

“I know sister. I can feel it as well… But we will be prepared as best we can be. These dreams may be bad omens, but we have been preparing for this for some time now and we will have aid when we need it. When the time comes and we have found the answers we seek about these dreams, know that I will follow you no matter what decision you make. I swear this on the dragon blood that flows through our veins,” the cloaked woman speaks kindly as she follows Kiba’s gaze to the spot where the odd shadow once was. Kiba sighs softly and smiles ruefully at the sky before shaking her head gently.

“I don’t know if I’ll have all the answers I seek when it comes time to make a decision about what I must do… But I will follow my heart as I always have and let it guide me through what is to come,” Kiba speaks softly as she keeps her eyes on the horizon. The two stand there for a few more moments before pulling away as they hear someone coming back to the roof. The cloaked woman swings herself over the edge of the tower and clings to the side moments before Camilla reappears.

“Is everything okay, Kiba?” Camilla speaks worriedly as she frowns slightly towards Kiba. Kiba smiles softly and looks up at the sky above her with a thoughtful expression. Kiba releases a slow, shaky breath before turning towards Camilla.

“I’m fine, Camilla. Just… a bit overwhelmed and excited to finally be leaving… I honestly never thought that I’d get to leave so soon,” Kiba says softly. She smiles gently and slowly walks towards Camilla as she feels the violet eyes scrutinizing her worriedly. Camilla smiles softly and hugs Kiba tightly when she’s within arms reach, making the red eyed girl yelp from surprise and pain as she’s crushed against the taller woman before blushing in embarrassment.

“You’re far too cute, Kiba. I know this is unexpected, but I’m also very glad that you’re finally going to be traveling back to the castle with us. I’m looking forward to having you back at the castle and maybe even by my side in any coming fights,” Camilla speaks fondly as she smiles down at Kiba. Kiba blushes and nods gently before pulling away a bit. Camilla giggles and the two begin to make their way to the stables of the Citadel to prepare for their journey. As they leave Kiba glances backwards and smiles seeing the cloaked woman watching the two from the edge of the tower’s roof. They share a knowing look before Kiba looks back ahead of her, feeling more prepared for the journey ahead.

Kiba and the Nohr siblings make their way into the stables near the entrance to the Citadel to fetch their mounts to begin their journey to the capital. Inside, a maid of with dark blue hair in a braid greets the five and bows towards them politely. When she straightens, the end of her braid can be seen to be a dark shade of red and her pale yellow eyes focus on Kiba as she smiles politely. Kiba smiles back widely as she takes note of Flora securing a bag to Kiba’s saddle nearby.

“I hear you can finally leave the fortress. You must be very happy, Lady Kiba. Gunter has asked me to go with you to the capital so I can look after your horses,” the yellow eyed maid says as she smiles at Kiba. Kiba smiles back and giggles excitedly, feeling much more relaxed after her private talk on the rooftop.

“Glad to hear it, Lilith! I’d miss you if you weren’t coming along too,” Kiba says as honesty drips from her words.

“Lilith, are the horses ready?” Xander speaks regally as he schools his face into that of the future King of Nohr. Lilith smiles as a light blush covers her cheeks from her earlier work.

“Yes, milord. Everything is ready, and the horses seem excited for the trip. They are all very fond of Lady Kiba. Probably from all her time in the stables… Especially her Ebony,” Lilith smiles widely and giggles as a loud neigh comes from the back of the stable at the name. Kiba giggles at the sound and seems to grin wider as a soft hum of content escapes when a black-as-night mare is led into the room by Flora.

 _‘Ebony looks as excited as I feel about this entire trip. I hope she’s up to this task and that she enjoys my treat for her.’_ Kiba thinks as she slides her thumb over a sweet that she snagged on the way down with Camilla.

“Our Kiba does love animals. Such a kindhearted soul… Why, she even nursed an injured baby bird back to health one time!” Camilla interrupts Kiba’s thoughts as she speaks proudly of the girl at her side. Lilith’s smile falters a bit and she looks a bit nervous as she listens to Camilla quietly. Kiba’s eyes narrow slightly as she looks at the girl and speaks gently to her.

“Is something wrong, Lilith?”

“Oh… no. It’s nothing,” Lilith speaks softly and closes her eyes looking saddened about something. The reaction makes Kiba’s brow lower in concern for the other girl as she watches her.

“Isn’t it obvious, Kiba? Lilith is sad because she’s going to miss you!” Elise winks at Kiba and smiles at her gently.

“She’s going with us, Elise. I don’t think that’s what’s bothering her,” Kiba speaks softly as she smiles at Elise knowing she meant well.

“Oh, right! Well then, I bet she’s sad ‘cause she won’t have you all to herself anymore. You’ve always been especially fond of our sister, haven’t you, Lilith?” Elise speaks quickly as she grins widely. Lilith blushes in nervousness and looks a bit unnerved by Elise’s words.

“I, er—”

“As gripping as all this is, we should be on our way. We mustn’t keep Father waiting longer than necessary,” Xander interrupts Lilith as he smiles towards his siblings. Kiba grins widely as her eyes seem to shine with excitement.

“Yes, let’s go!” Kiba exclaims excitedly as she moves towards Ebony and places a hand on her neck gently. Gunter enters with his own horse and turns towards Flora and Felicia as the two finish packing supplies for those leaving.

“Flora, you and Felicia will remain here to watch over the fortress. Jakob and I will accompany Lady Kiba. We may be gone for some time. Take good care of the place,” Gunter speaks firmly as he checks the saddle on his warhorse.

“Of course. You may rely on us,” Flora smiles and nods in agreement to the directions given to her. She then turns towards Kiba as Felicia smiles softly towards the woman.

“Safe travels, Lady Kiba,” Felicia smiles as she speaks excitedly to the noble woman. Kiba smiles and rubs Ebony’s neck and head before turning towards Felicia and her blue haired sister.

“Thank you. I hope to see both of you again soon…just not here,” Kiba smiles as she speaks honestly to the two. Flora and Felicia nod in agreement before watching as Kiba climbs into the saddle on Ebony’s back. The two accompany the nobles to the gates and wave them off as the party sets off towards the castle. Kiba smiles gently as her eyes take in all that’s around her, but she never turns to look back behind them at the rapidly disappearing Northern Citadel, the place that was her home as much as her prison.

Kiba walks down a long hallway in Windmire, the Nohr capital, as her eyes take in everything around her with a great curiosity having arrived in half a day’s hard ride along with her siblings. Kiba keeps her features schooled into one of someone who has seen the capital their entire life, but is unable to keep the curiousness out of her gaze. She looks at the ornate black and gold tapestries on the walls with awe and pauses for a split second before continuing her slow, steady walk as Elise stops ahead of her and waves for her to hurry up. Kiba shakes herself to clear her mind as she and the Nohrian royals come to the steps leading into the castle. They stop and look up at the white haired man that stands at the top. The siblings silently stand to the side, so that Kiba is standing directly in front of the man. She takes a deep breath and slows her heart rate to keep calm as she stares up at the man.

“I see you made it here safely, Kiba,” the man speaks without emotion as he stares at the burgundy haired woman gravely. Kiba takes a nervous breath as she stares at the man before daring to speak as she manages to keep her voice from shaking too much.

“Yes, Father. Long have I wished to see you and visit Castle Krakenburg again. I feel like I’m dreaming…,” Kiba speaks softly, her voice respectful and awe filled as she gazes up at the man. _‘King Garon… My Father’s pawn… You have changed so little since you sent me away to the Northern Citadel…’_ Kiba thinks as she stares at the man. She takes a light sniff of the air and barely manages to stop a gag as she smells something horribly decayed. Those scrutinizing and watching her do not seem to be any wiser as she smiles up at the Nohrian King.

“It is only thanks to your diligence that you are here. I am told you are now a warrior almost on par with Xander. You finally possess the strength to be an instrument of Nohr’s power in the world,” Garon speaks as indifferently as before as he stares down at the five in front of him. _‘Of course… To you we’re all instruments… Things to be thrown away after we have served our purpose…’_ Kiba thinks bitterly as she stays silent and appears excited by his words of serving Nohr.

“But, Father, will she be all right outside of the fortress?” Elise speaks worriedly as she keeps her eyes lowered slightly.

“I worry about that as well. Isn’t it dangerous for Kiba to live outside the fortress’s magical barrier?” Camilla voices her own worries as she frowns with concern. Kiba clenches a fist at her side and then her jaw as her teeth grind together for a moment before she relaxes just as quickly.

“I appreciate your concern, but I _earned_ my way here and I’m more than ready to fight to prove it if I must,” Kiba speaks lowly as she dips her head respectfully towards her King Garon. King Garon’s ever present frown almost twitches into a sneer before it disappears in the next second.

“Kiba, as you know, Nohr is at war with the eastern kingdom of Hoshido,” Garon speaks gravely as he stares at the young woman. Kiba merely nods her head as she stays silent knowing that her father is not done speaking yet. “We of the royal family are descendants of the ancient gods, the First Dragons. As inheritors of that divine strength, we conquer those who oppose us with ease. One who learns to wield that power can destroy an entire army of common troops. Xander, Camilla, and Leo have already shown that they possess this power. I expect no less from you.”

“I am aware of your expectations, Father, and I plan on proving to you and anyone who may doubt my abilities that I am more than capable to using the powers granted to me by the ancient gods. I have spent every day training myself to accomplish just that after all,” Kiba speaks grimly as she bows towards Garon in the highest form of respect.

“Hmm…you show promise. But you will need a suitable weapon in order to serve Nohr,” Garon speaks gravely as he stares at the bowed woman. A moment after he speaks the very air in front of Kiba glows with a dark light and then condenses into a black sword with glowing veins of purple streaking through it. _‘EVIL! Vile thing of deceit!’_ Kiba lifts her head and stares in awe struck apprehension at the weapon as her mind races with thoughts that scream at her not to touch the weapon. She knew not what this blade was, but she could feel the darkness that seeped off the weapon in waves making her suppress a shiver of dread.

“This is Ganglari, a sword infused with magic from another world. With this sword at your side, you will crush the Hoshidan army with ease,” Garon speaks prophetically as he stares at the blade grimly. _‘Magic from another world?’_  Kiba thinks as she turns her eyes towards her father.

“Thank you for this generous gift, Father. I will use it to make you proud,” Kiba speaks confidently as she gazes up at the king.

“Hmm… Generous indeed,” Xander speaks lowly as he stares at the sword with suspicion. He knew that the blade held great dragon power in it and was confused as to why one of the legendary weapons of Nohr would be given to Kiba. Xander was even more confused as to why Garon seemed to be overjoyed when Kiba touched the blade and it pulsed darkly as Xander distinctly remembered that Kiba had been sent to the Northern Citadel because she had struggled to control the Dragon Vein’s that focused the magic of the ancient gods into their plane of existence.

“Now, let us see you put that sword to its proper use… Bring out the prisoners!” Garon roars out as he stares at his children.

“Prisoners?” Kiba whispers to herself confused as she grips Ganglari in one hand and frowns with distaste. A moment later two warriors, one male and the other female, enter the room and glare at the six standing across from them. The female has stark white hair, an outraged expression on her features and wears red shorts with a yellow belt at her waist, and wears only bandaging cloth around her breasts as her darkly tanned, muscular form is exposed for all to see. The male has green hair, a solemn expression, and wears clothing that Kiba has never seen before, but resembles the clothing that Jakob wears when he spares with Kiba for her training.

“These are prisoners from our most recent skirmish with Hoshido. I want to see your power with my own eyes. Use that sword to strike them down,” Garon orders grimly as he stares at Kiba. Kiba bows in acknowledgment of the order before turning to face the warriors. She steps forward calmly and Gunter joins her at her left hand.

“I shall join you, milady. My lance arm is perhaps rusty but still serviceable. I will serve to keep the allies of our enemies at bay for you,” Gunter speaks grimly as his mount whinnies quietly. A small smile graces Kiba’s lips and she nods towards the great knight before sensing Jakob step up to stand on her right side.

“Naturally I will assist you as well, Lady Kiba. I couldn’t allow someone so advanced in years as Gunter to bear the burden of assisting you alone. There is no need for you to soil your hands with this filth, Lady Kiba. Please relax and leave the fighting to us. Afterwards, I will prepare you some tea,” Jakob smiles widely as he speaks to the two respectfully. Kiba huffs a sigh and shakes her head in frustration at Jakob’s words.

“No, Jakob. I will not stand by and watch as you and Gunter fight my battle for me. Assist me if you wish, but do not think I will sit by idly and do nothing,” Kiba speaks firmly as her red eyes sparkle dangerously. Jakob glances at Kiba for a moment and does a double take from the determination and resolve that shines in Kiba’s eyes. He smiles and says nothing as he accepts the orders of his liege. Kiba’s gaze is drawn away from her butler as the white haired warrior begins to yell a challenge to the three.

“I am Rinkah, daughter of the Flame Tribe’s honorable chieftain. What is your name, Nohrian princess?” Rinkah’s voice travels through the room easily as Kiba’s ears twitch a bit at the tone. Kiba frowns a bit as her eyes narrow and the wing shaped tattoos on her cheeks seem to pulse for a moment with power as Ganglari responds by glowing a bit brighter.

“I am Kiba Fenrisulfur. Second oldest daughter of King Garon and the one who shall best you in battle here and now,” Kiba speaks calmly as her voice travels with conviction despite her speaking at a normal tone. The male beside Rinkah looks surprised and unsure after hearing her name and frowns in thought.

“Kiba… Can it be?” the green haired man murmurs softly. Kiba’s red eyes shift to him and she stares at him questioningly, but the determination in her gaze never wavers.

“Have you heard of me, male?” Kiba’s voice is curious, but dangerous as she stares at the man with a small frown. The man is silent as he closes his eyes almost regretfully before opening them to stare at her calmly.

“I am Kaze, a ninja of Hoshido. Show me what you can do,” Kaze speaks determinedly as he loses his thoughtful gaze.

“Kill them all,” Garon speaks commandingly as he stares at the combatants. Kiba’s pupils shrink at the command and her teeth lash at the air almost hungrily as a low hiss escapes past her lips. She brandishes Ganglari and the blade turns black as the enemies rush forward. Gunter charges forward and strikes at the warrior who accompanied Rinkah into the battle as Jakob rushes to meet the ally of Kaze. Jakob deflects a strike with his gauntlet and retaliates by cutting into the other warrior’s side. Gunter glares and releases a war cry as he plows over his opponent then turns to assist Jakob.

Kiba watches her two allies for a few moments before darting past them as she charges Rinkah. She raises her sword and slices at Rinkah’s side forcing the woman to dodge backwards. Rinkah quickly recovers and rushes Kiba as she strikes at her exposed side, but Kiba blocks the blow and pushes against Rinkah’s club trying to overpower her. Kiba snarls as she gazes at Rinkah with a determination that makes the Flame Tribe warrior’s expression become worried as she feels herself being slowly overpowered by the Nohrian Princess. Just as Kiba is about to overpower the white haired female her ears twitch and she sweeps Rinkah’s legs out from under her before throwing herself backwards and to the right as a shuriken and dagger pass harmlessly through the air where the two were just locked in battle. Kiba snarls as she shoots a warning glare to Jakob making the butler flinch away after his impromptu action before he nimbly dodges out of range of the swordsman that he and Gunter are engaging.

“A ninja’s shuriken may not cut deep, but it will still sap your strength. Your death need not come all at once after all,” Kaze’s voice whispers in Kiba’s ears making the sensitive appendages appear to twitch. Her eyes stay locked on Jakob though as she uses her hearing and sense of smell to locate Kaze. “You shouldn’t take your eyes off your opponent! Rookie mistake!” Kaze yells as he appears to the right of Kiba, away from the blade in her other hand, and stabs his shuriken towards her chest. Kiba flicks her wrist around and blocks the blow before slamming her open palm into Kaze’s chest forcing the wind from his lungs and stunning him. Kaze looks shocked to have been blocked and Kiba turns her eyes back towards him as she tightens her grip on her sword and twists her wrist around to slice Ganglari across Kaze’s chest sending the ninja backwards so he slides across the floor.

“Never underestimate your opponent. To do so is to die a worthless death,” Kiba speaks plainly as she watches the recovering Rinkah and Kaze. Rinkah glares as she gets back to her feet alongside Kaze and the two prepare to counter attack. Kiba watches for a moment more before she feels a pull coming from beneath her that makes her blood stir. She narrows her eyes and watches the two as they charge towards her in what seems to be slow motion to her now glowing eyes. Kiba grips Ganglari with one hand and spins the blade around to latch it to her back as she drops into a kneeling position. She lifts her right palm and slams it into the ground beneath her feet as she feels the ground shudder from her touch. The warriors across from her watch in fear as the floor erupts beneath them and a pillar of rock slams into each of their chests with just enough force to wind them.

 _‘I wonder if it always feels like such a rush to use a Dragon Vein.’_ Kiba thinks idly as she feels an excited rush pass through her form. She reaches behind her with her right hand and grasps Ganglari’s hilt as she rushes forwards and nears Rinkah and Kaze as the two struggle to get to their feet after having been knocked prone by the strike to their chests. Their eyes widen in shock as Kiba swings Ganglari through the air and strikes them both in the chest forcing the two to their knees. Kiba huffs out a sigh of relief as the two kneel before her and make no attempt to get up.

“Nohrian scum…,” Rinkah whispers tiredly as she glares at the ground in front of Kiba’s feet. Kiba feels her lips twitch downward in a frown as she hears sadness and fear in the woman’s voice. _‘Why does she have such a strong sadness in her voice when she insults me and my country?’_

“I regret…nothing…” Kaze whispers just as quietly with the same stare and tone of voice. “So this is how it ends…” Kaze winces as he kneels in front of Kiba who looks down at the warriors at her feet.

“They’re really tough, aren’t they? I hope all Hoshidans aren’t this strong,” Kiba huffs softly though she doesn’t appear to have really exerted herself. A small frown graces her lips as she stares at Rinkah with a curious gaze, but it goes unnoticed by those around her since the others are either gazing at the floor in defeat or the Hoshidans in triumph.

“Don’t just stand there, idiot girl. Finish them!” Garon speaks with finality as he watches Kiba simply stand above the beaten Hoshidans. Kiba frowns and turns to face Garon as her eyes narrow a bit and still sparkle with that dangerous light of battle.

“But, Father…they’re beaten. You want me to execute helpless prisoners?” Kiba speaks lowly as she stares at her father in disbelief.

“You dare question me?! I order you to kill them!” Garon speaks calmly his voice dangerously low. Kiba growls lowly as she stands in front of the downed Hoshidans at the ready as her eyes become cold.

“No. I refuse to kill those who cannot even protect themselves from the killing blow,” Kiba speaks calmly as she faces her father. She stares him down and watches as his face contorts with anger and he reaches into his robes.

“I won’t argue the point any further,” Garon speaks coldly as he readies a tome. Kiba’s eyes widen in recognition of a Ragnarok tome making her scowl angrily. He raises the tome and sends a ball of fire at them, but Kiba’s eyes narrow angrily as she slices Ganglari through the air diagonally causing the spell to be redirect upwards. The spell detonates harmlessly above them and Kiba swings her blade through the air above her head to dispel the flames that rain down on herself and the Hoshidans keeping them all safe from harm. Garon snarls and releases another spell as Kiba slides in front of Kaze and blocks the blast again with a hiss as her clawed gauntlets dig into the sword’s blade and hilt to keep the blade steady enough to block the spell.

“Hm?” Kaze looks at Kiba in surprise as a frown forms on his face. Kiba hisses and swings Ganglari in an arc around her form until the blade is resting at her side.

“Kiba! What are you—” Elise cries out in worry.

“Unbelievable…” Xander speaks nervously as he stares at Kiba in surprise.

“You would defy me directly, Kiba?!” Garon roars in anger as he glares at the woman.

“Father, please forgive her! She doesn’t yet understand our situation…” Xander calls out as he faces his father worriedly.

“Fine, Xander, you kill them. And if anyone gets in your way, kill them too,” Garon speaks coldly as he stares past Xander and glares at Kiba. Kiba glares right back as she tightens her grip on her blade decisively and stands her ground calmly.

“Ngh…” Xander grunts and turns away from his father with a conflicted expression.

“DO IT! KILL THEM ALL!” Garon roars as he continues to glare at Kiba. Xander stays silent as he stares at his father before facing Kiba as he holds Siegfried in his hand and approaches Kiba calmly.

“Stand down, Kiba. If you don’t I will be forced to—”

“No. I won’t let you do this, Xander. If you wish to kill them then you will go through me to do it,” Kiba speaks icily as she lowers her head to hide her eyes in shadows. Xander growls and slices at her unprotected side, but Kiba simply raises Ganglari in a diagonal defensive position which forces Xander’s strike to slide harmlessly off to the side. Kiba keeps her gaze downwards as she twists her blade around to strike towards Xander’s chest forcing the blonde to leap backwards or suffer a crippling wound as his hair sways from the rush of air caused by Kiba’s blow. Kiba hisses out a breath and strikes again while still maintaining her defensive stance in front of the Hoshidans, but takes a blow to her left side due to her refusal to move from her spot.

“Why do you refuse, Kiba? You know the Hoshidans are our sworn enemies,” Xander speaks uncertainly as he stands across from Kiba. Kiba makes no sound for a few moments as blood slowly slides down her once pristine armor before she releases a sigh that sounds like a hiss of anger.

“I am aware of that, but this is different. These people cannot fight back to protect themselves, so why kill them off? Would it not be better to show them mercy or keep them alive for information? Just because they are our enemy doesn’t mean we must be heartless to them,” Kiba speaks lowly as she slowly lifts her gaze to meet Xander’s eyes. Xander steps back seeing how cold and dead the eyes look as they shine with conviction. Xander simply stares in concern for a moment before reengaging his sister as the two legendary swords of Nohr seem to cancel out the other’s powers.

“Please, Kiba, don’t fight him… My dear, sweet Kiba…” Camilla speaks worriedly as she closes her eyes unable to watch as her brother continues to strike at Kiba.

“No no no! Leo, what should we do?” Elise speaks worriedly as a whimper of fear escapes. Leo watches impassively as he keeps his hands behind his back, but grips Brynhildr tightly in his right hand. Leo sighs heavily and shakes his head as he pulls the tome from behind his back.

“Why does this fall to me?” Leo speaks grimly as he prepares to attack with his tome. He releases the magic and Kiba leaps to the side to avoid the blast as the Hoshidans cry out in pain when struck before landing hard on the ground. Kiba stares at the sight with anger and hate as her gauntlet can be heard tightening around Ganglari’s hilt with the sound of metal scraping against metal. “Father, I have dispatched our enemies on behalf of my soft hearted sister.”

Garon looks at the very pleased Leo and grunts in acknowledgement before turning his gaze back towards the burgundy haired woman. Kiba has her back turned towards him and Xander without a care that she is open to an attack from behind.

“I only ask that you would be merciful in your punishment of her…” Leo speaks softly as he watches his father carefully.

“Enough! I will consider this matter later,” Garon speaks decisively as he glares at Kiba’s back. He lingers for only a second longer before turning to leave, but stops when Ganglari can be heard clattering to the floor. Kiba drops to her knees as she bows in front of Garon and her siblings leaving herself completely exposed.

“Forgive me, Father… I do not know what came over me to make me act as I did… I am obviously not ready to be used as an instrument of war by Nohr… When you decide my punishment I implore you to not hold back because of Leo’s request… I deserve whatever punishment you see fit of a sword that cannot accomplish its task,” Kiba speaks softly as she stays knelt in front of King Garon. Garon smirks at the sight for a moment before his gaze returns to normal.

“I said I would consider this matter later. I will and you don’t need to worry about me holding back on your punishment simply because you’re my daughter either,” Garon speaks grimly before making his leave. Kiba stands and grabs Ganglari as she attaches the blade to her back. Once Garon is gone she moves to stand in front of Leo as she hisses dangerously at him in anger.

“How could you do that, Leo?! They were beaten! There was no reason to execute them like cattle led to the slaughter!” Kiba’s voice is cold as her eyes are once again angry and dangerous. Leo just smiles and chuckles softly as Kiba’s features soften into acceptance as her anger fades.

“Agreed. Now hush,” Leo speaks gently with a small smile as Kiba returns the smile.

“Enough, both of you. The battle is over,” Xander speaks firmly as he approaches the two with a slight glare. Kiba stays silent as her features soften into a neutral state as she simply stares at the two. “Mark my words, Kiba… One day an act of kindness may be the death of you.” Kiba’s eyes narrow thoughtfully at Xander’s words and she tilts her head ever so slightly to the left in contemplation as her lips purse slightly.

“That may be true, Xander, but at least if I die because of an act of kindness, I die without any regrets or thoughts that my life was a worthless one ruled by someone other than me,” Kiba speaks firmly and gives a shrug of dismissal afterwards.

“… Well said.” Xander nods in agreement to Kiba’s words as the four can hear the truth ringing within them. “Guard! I would examine the prisoners’ belongings. Bring their remains to my quarters.” Xander speaks firmly as he never takes his eyes off Kiba and Leo.

“Of course, Your Highness,” a female voice answers and Kiba turns her head to look at the guard. A sly smirk crosses Kiba’s lips as she sees a cloaked warrior strutting over to the bodies and collecting them with a calm, careful touch. Kiba turns away and gazes at Leo curiously as she narrows her eyes and speaks freely as the only people in the room are the Nohrian royalty and the single guard.

“Leo, your spell…”

“Was only enough to weaken them, yes. I should have followed Father’s orders. But Camilla and Elise always make such a fuss when I do anything to upset you,” Leo speaks lowly and kindly as Kiba smiles thankfully.

“Thank you, Leo. I’m sorry for teasing you about your collar,” Kiba smiles sincerely as she speaks softly. Leo sighs and looks at the cloaked woman hoping she hadn’t overheard.

“You can repay me by not mentioning it again,” Leo grumbles softly in embarrassment as he glares gently.

“That was great, Brother!” Elise smiles and beams as she thanks her brother with a wide grin.

“It was, but I doubt this will be the last we hear of this. Father never forgets a slight,” Camilla speaks grimly as she holds a hand over her mouth a bit. Kiba sighs as she looks at Camilla and nods gently before her eyes slide past her sisters and settle on the cloaked woman who lifts Rinkah into her left arm carefully, but swings Kaze over her right shoulder harshly.

“I don’t think Father could do something that makes me regret my decision to stand up for them, Camilla,” Kiba speaks gently as she stares at the cloaked woman. Camilla gazes at Kiba curiously before turning her head to watch the back of the retreating woman. Camilla’s purple eyes narrow dangerously as she frowns a bit, but says nothing else.

Kiba and Xander slowly walk through the gardens of Castle Krakenburg as Kiba hums softly. Xander sighs softly as he leads Kiba deep into the gardens to meet with Rinkah and Kaze. Kiba smiles kindly when she sees the two and sighs gently in relief. Xander faces the two with a grim expression as he stops about a foot away from them, but Kiba stands almost within arm’s reach of them.

“Listen well. It is only my sister’s kind heart that has bought your freedom. Disappear now, lest you be spotted by our king,” Xander speaks firmly as he tries to keep this encounter as brief as possible. Kaze stays silent as he stares at Kiba, but the burgundy haired woman either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care as she smiles at the two and watches Rinkah with fascination. Kaze watches for a moment longer before taking his leave quickly.

“Tch. I am not a hostage to be freed. You said your name is Kiba?” Rinkah speaks coldly as she grimaces at the thought of being released. Her gaze then hardens as she shoots a glare at Kiba. “When next we meet, I will make you pay for this humiliation!” Kiba laughs gently and smiles as Xander jumps a bit at the sudden light hearted sound. Rinkah jumps and looks at Kiba as though she’s lost her mind and considers bolting, but hesitates as Kiba calms down enough to speak.

“I was hoping the next time we met, it could be as friends, Rinkah of the Flame Tribe,” Kiba chuckles again as she speaks lightly. Rinkah glares, but looks unsure of herself in the face of such genuine kindness.

“Softhearted fool! I am a Hoshidan warrior. You do not understand what you suggest,” Rinkah snarls at Kiba which causes Xander to place a hand on his sword. Rinkah tenses from the action ever so slightly, but it is an action that doesn’t go unnoticed by Kiba.

“Xander, please remove your hand from Siegfried. You’re making Rinkah nervous and that will only worsen our relationship with Hoshido,” Kiba speaks calmly as she stares at Rinkah. Xander glances at Kiba for a moment before removing his hand from his sword. Rinkah relaxes and turns a curious gaze to Kiba as the burgundy woman smiles over her shoulder at Xander. “I understand that right now Hoshido and Nohr are at war, Rinkah. But I’m trying to plan ahead for the day the war is over and we can live in peace.” Kiba smiles as she speaks and signals for someone to come closer. Xander narrows his eyes at the gesture and frowns as he watches Kiba carefully.

“I’ve heard rumors of a sheltered Nohrian princess who knows nothing of the world. I see those rumors are true,” Rinkah grunts her response as she adopts a passive expression. “If we do meet again, the world will have no doubt taught you the error of your ways.” Rinkah smirks confidently as she stares at Kiba calmly. Kiba laughs and shakes her head making Rinkah look at her warily again before she finds herself relaxing despite knowing her life is still in danger, so long as she’s in proximity of King Garon.

“I highly doubt that the world could make Lady Kiba change her views so easily, Lady Rinkah,” a female voice speaks softly as the cloaked woman from the throne room steps up behind Kiba. The cloaked woman wraps her arms around Kiba’s waist affectionately as the burgundy haired woman giggles softly. Xander jumps at the woman’s sudden appearance and narrows his eyes at the affectionate gesture given so freely to Kiba. He rests his hand on his sword once more, but relaxes when Kiba giggles at the woman again. Rinkah blushes hearing the title she's called by this mysterious woman as she stares at the two in surprise.

"Very true, old friend. Though you do have a job to accomplish still," Kiba laughs and smiles softly at the cloaked woman as she subconsciously folds her hands over the other woman's strong arms. The woman giggles and smiles as she nods in acknowledgement.

"And what would her job be?" Rinkah speaks apprehensively as she stares at the two still blushing. Kiba smiles and giggles as she steps away from the woman carefully.

"Simple. I am to accompany you and Kaze back out of Nohr. Everything that we've done to get you and Kaze free will have been for naught if you two get captured again after all," the woman smiles as she speaks and releases Kiba as the two smile kindly towards Rinkah.

"I don't need some babysitter to escort me out of here," Rinkah growls and glares angrily.

"Are you really going to object to having someone who knows this country like the back of her hand helping you escape?" the woman speaks curiously as she watches Rinkah. Rinkah stays silent before sighing in acceptance. "Great! We should get going then. I'll make my report about their safety once I've helped both of them cross back into Hoshido, Kiba." The woman grins towards Kiba after she gets Rinkah's, albeit reluctant, approval. Kiba nods and Rinkah and the woman turn to follow after Kaze as Kiba and Xander return to the castle.

Kaze stands at the exit having been waiting on Rinkah and is instantly on edge when he sees the mysterious woman at Rinkah’s side. His eyes narrow in suspicion, but the woman just giggles as a black gauntlet identical to Kiba’s own covers the sly grin beneath it. The only difference between the armor this woman wears and Kiba’s is that the gauntlets on this one do not have the sharp pointed tips. Instead they are rounded and soft as the black material moves freely around her fingers.

“Relax Kaze. She isn’t an enemy and even if she is I doubt she will defy the orders of her mistress,” Rinkah speaks calmly as she folds her arms across her chest with a bored expression. The woman nods and stands at Rinkah’s left shoulder as she tilts her head to let sparkling, blood red eyes catch Kaze’s gaze.

“It doesn’t matter. She can’t follow us because we still have a mission to accomplish, Rinkah,” Kaze speaks warily as he shivers from the intensity of the scrutinizing gaze of the woman. “I want you to follow Kiba and keep an eye on her.” Rinkah scowls and a low growl escapes as she glares at Kaze.

“Why the hell would I do that?” Rinkah hisses as her left hand curls into a fist beneath her right arm.

“You heard her name Rinkah… You know we must inform them about this,” Kaze speaks seriously as he closes his eyes in thought.

“You don’t honestly believe she could be the one do you?” Rinkah growls her response as her lips curl upwards to show her white teeth in frustration. The woman watches for a moment before she places her hand on Rinkah’s shoulder making the white haired woman flinch a bit. Rinkah tries to shrug off the hand at first, but relaxes into the soothing touch as she sighs heavily.

“You know we cannot risk keeping this to ourselves… We must inform the Hoshidan royals about this, but we must also keep an eye on Kiba. It’s the only way,” Kaze speaks grimly as he stares at Rinkah seriously. Rinkah growls and sighs in resignation and acceptance as the cloaked woman listens silently. Rinkah turns back towards the castle and sighs heavily once more as she stares at the castle apprehensively. _‘Just who are you, Kiba Fenrisulfur?’_ Rinkah thinks grimly as she feels Kaze’s presence retreat from her and the silent woman at her side.

 _‘Now the real test of who we are begins, sister.’_ The cloaked woman follows Rinkah’s gaze, but her eyes focus on a particular window where she can see the outline of a woman sitting with a book in her hands. The warrior sighs and shakes her head slowly as she and Rinkah slip further into the shadows of the tunnel and begin their observation.


	2. Chapter 2: A Princess's Journey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiba faces the punishment set forth by King Garon for her treason, and faces the consequences for actions not her own.
> 
> Enjoy chapter 2!

Four days pass after Kiba’s stunt with the Hoshidan soldiers during which Kiba waited nervously in her rooms to be called by King Garon for her punishment to be decided. While she waited, she spent many of the days staring out her window nervously into the distance. Two days after the meeting in the gardens, a tapping awakens the princess from a restless night of sleep. She opens the window to let a small messenger bird inside which brings her news from the woman saying they had escaped and wishes her luck with whatever punishment Garon decided to inflict upon Kiba. Kiba reads the letter and then burns it before sweeping up the ashes and dumping them in a vile. She gives the vial back to the bird and sends it off before grabbing a book and settling down to wait for Garon to summon her.

On the fourth day, Kiba and Elise slowly walk down a hallway in Castle Krakenburg on their way to Garon’s chambers. Kiba wrings her hands together nervously as she walks behind the younger girl, her mind racing with the events of the last few days as she worries for the Hoshidan natives. She glances away when Elise stops in front of her and her thoughts come to a halt as she stares at the ornate doors of Garon’s chambers. Her hands shake slightly from nervousness and she worries her bottom lip in a way that most people would miss if they didn’t know her very well.

“Alright, Kiba. Let’s go in there together. I’ll help as much as possible. This is our father we’re talking about. He has to forgive you, right?” Elise smiles and winks towards Kiba with a hopeful tone as she crosses her arms behind her back. Kiba glances at Elise and feels a bit of her nerves dissipate at the sight of the smiling princess. She smiles fondly and nods gently towards the girl.

“Thanks, Elise. I hope you’re right.” Kiba murmurs softly as she keeps her gaze on the doors in front of her. Elise nods and looks nervous as she bounces a little bit from foot to foot.

“All right. Deep breath, and…here we go. Father! We have something we need to talk to you about!” Elise calls out respectfully. Kiba and Elise wait for an answer, but are surprised when the booming laughter of Garon echoes from within the chamber causing both to jump as Elise moves her hands to her sides nervously. Kiba gulps as she grimaces with worry and moves her hand towards her sword hilt feeling more secure when her palm rests against it.

“Father?” Kiba calls softly as she stares at the doors. Elise turns towards Kiba looking serious as she shakes her head a bit.

“It sounds like he’s with someone… Maybe we should come back later.” Elise speaks gently and glances at the door. Kiba looks like she’s about to agree as she gulps and opens her mouth to respond before snapping it shut hearing something on the other side of the door. She tenses and Elise looks at her strangely before realization dawns on her as she remembers Kiba has better hearing than she does.

“Who’s there?” Garon calls out. Elise gulps and looks down a bit before answering.

“Oh! Sorry to bother you, Father…”

“Yes, we apologize if this isn’t a good time,” Kiba speaks firmly as she stays on edge.

“What do you two want?” Garon speaks firmly.

“Father, we’re here to apologize. Right Kiba?,” Elise speaks nervously as she wrings her hands behind her back and turns towards Kiba. Kiba gulps gently and nods before remembering that Garon can’t see her.

“Yes, that’s right. I’m sorry for questioning you,” Kiba speaks firmly as she stares at the door calmly.

“You may enter,” Garon calls and the doors are opened. Elise and Kiba share a look before moving inside silently. They approach the throne of black marble quietly and stop at the foot of the steps leading up to it. Kiba’s red eyes scan the area curiously as she searches for whoever was in the room with Garon only moments earlier, but sees no one.  _ ‘Where are you? I know someone was here with you Father.’ _

“Kiba… You disobeyed a direct order from me. Ordinarily, you would not still be alive,” Garon speaks gravely as he gazes down at Kiba. Kiba gulps nervously and nods gently as she bows her head towards her father.

“I understand…” Kiba speaks firmly as she nods gravely. Elise’s head jerks upwards at the tone of acceptance in Kiba’s voice to frown up at Garon nervous, but resolute as she speaks up.

“No! Father, I can explain--,” Elise begins.

“Silence!” Garon speaks firmly as Elise falls silent instantly. Kiba flinches at the sharp tone and glances towards Elise, worried for the younger girl’s safety, from the corner of her eye. She freezes, seeing the fear on Elise’s face and feels a surge of calm protectiveness for the younger princess that overrides her fear for herself. “Now, as you are my child, Kiba, I will grant you  _ some  _ leeway. I have something in mind for you. A mission. And if you complete this task successfully, I will pardon your crime in full.”

“Really?!” Kiba squeaks as she looks up in surprise before turning serious again. “What sort of mission?” Garon glowers as he stares down at the two before his gaze focuses solely on Kiba.

“There is an abandoned fortress perched on the Hoshidan border. I wish to know if the building there remains serviceable. You are to travel to the site and inspect the premises. No battle will be required. Do you understand? I won’t tolerate being disappointed twice…” Garon speaks gravely as he lounges in his throne.

“Yes, Father. It shall be done,” Kiba speaks firmly as she bows deeply. Garon grunts and dismisses the two who hurry from the room. Elise takes a deep breath once they’re outside and turns towards Kiba, but stops when she sees the tail end of Kiba’s cape disappearing around the corner.

“Kiba?” Elise calls softly as she watches the cape disappear around the corner. Elise moves to follow her, but Kiba is already gone from sight and leaves the younger girl confused by her quick disappearance. Kiba presses herself against a wall and waits for Elise to leave before moving to her chambers quickly. She sighs once she’s inside her room and sits on her bed with her legs crossed as she stares out the window silently.

_ ‘And now the first step of the journey begins.’ _ Kiba thinks silently as she lets her eyes slide close in thought.

Two hours after having spoken with King Garon, Kiba stands in the throne room once more with the Nohr siblings surrounding her. Kiba stands with her body facing the Eastern wall of the room, but her face is turned towards her companions. All four of them gaze at her worriedly and Camilla frowns a bit more as her visible eye narrows.

“Darling, are you sure you’re going to be okay out there? I don’t like this…,” Camilla speaks gently knowing full well that her father is not one to forgive so easily, child of his or not. Kiba laughs gently and smiles reassuringly towards Camilla as she rests her hand on the pommel of Ganglari.

“Of course! Please don’t worry about me. I mean it’s just an abandoned fort after all,” Kiba smiles as she speaks lightly. Leo sighs and shakes his head, looking at Kiba sternly as worry creases his brow.

“You’re acting rather casual about all this, Kiba. It isn’t like Father to be so forgiving…” Leo speaks nervously as he closes his eyes in thought. Kiba perks up and gazes at Leo curiously.

“Huh? What do you mean, Leo?” Kiba says with a curious frown. Elise turns to glare at Leo and pouts a bit.

“That’s enough, Leo! Don’t be so worried all the time, sheesh. And don’t even try to scare Kiba before her first mission!” Elise growls and then smacks Leo upside the head. Leo doubles over from the force of the smack and is forced forward a step. He groans and closes his eyes with a grimace of discomfort and makes no move from his new position.

“Hey! That’s not necessary, Elise,” Leo speaks calmly as he looks at his little sister. Camilla sighs and smiles a bit as she shakes her head at the two.

“I suppose I’ll just have to come along. That way I know Kiba will be safe,” Camilla says worriedly.

“I’m afraid that’s not possible,” a male mage says as he approaches the group from behind the throne. The four royals turn to look at him and Kiba stiffens ever so slightly at his approach and has to force herself not to gag or cover her mouth as an unpleasant smell invades her nose. She pushes down the urge to vomit as she knows it will draw attention to herself and focuses on the man again.

“Why ever not, Iago?” Camilla almost frowns as she speaks and opens her eyes to look at him. 

“Lady Camilla, King Garon intends this expedition as a test of sorts. As his top advisor, I have been entrusted with coordinating this mission. He would like to know whether Princess Kiba is worthy… After all, she  _ is  _ a part of the royal lineage. Therefore, your assistance would simply muddy the results,” Iago speaks firmly as he gazes at Kiba alone. Kiba stares back and narrows her eyes a bit as her irises seem to glow for a split second with power. Iago appears calm, but is nervous from the way Kiba seems to scrutinize him like a piece of meat.

“Understood. Camilla, I need to do this by myself. Surely you understand,” Kiba speaks gravely with a resolute gaze that scrutinizes Iago like a bug not worth her time. Iago shifts a bit beneath the gaze and stares back a little unnerved by the change in the normally sweet, caring princess.

“Not all by yourself, Kiba,” King Garon says as he approaches the group. Kiba tears her gaze away from Iago and stares at her Father with a neutral expression.

“Father. I didn’t see you there ,” Kiba speaks calmly and bows a bit towards Garon.

“Rest assured, I don’t intend to send you out there completely defenseless,” Garon speaks calmly as he gazes down at Kiba. He pauses and a stout, balding man approaches from behind Garon who stops across from Kiba and her siblings. He stands tall at 5’5”, but is shorter than the red haired princess who straightens to her full height of 5’8” as she stares at the man. Xander frowns when the man approaches the group as he almost scowls with disapproval.

“…Milady,” the man speaks with a deep voice as he gazes at only Kiba.

“This is Hans. He is a veteran warrior and will insure no trouble befalls you,” Garon says. Kiba nods and smiles a bit up at Garon.

“Thank you, Father,” Kiba speaks respectfully as she stares at Garon.

“Hmm…” Xander frowns to himself and then moves to Kiba’s side. He leans down and whispers to her, “I’d be wary of that man if I were you, Kiba…” Kiba tilts her head ever so slightly towards Xander as she keeps her gaze on Hans.

“Why do you say that?”

“He’s a criminal, a murderer and scoundrel. I arrested him myself. Father seems to think he’s rehabilitated, but I’m not so sure,” Xander speaks worriedly as he grimaces with disapproval. “That said, he is a formidable soldier.”

“I see,” Kiba speaks lowly as she stares at Hans. Hans smiles at her and Kiba narrows her eyes before bowing to Garon. “If you’ll allow me to, I’ll be taking my leave now, Father.” Garon simply nods and Kiba straightens before walking out of the throne room, silently, as Hans hurries after her. Kiba does not acknowledge his presence as she heads to the stables. She greets Gunter and Jakob once inside and the group sets out.

Kiba sighs as she sits behind Gunter on his steed and stares around him at the path. She stares forward as lightning cracks across the sky and watches as the light arcs through the sky before turning her gaze towards the old pack horse that Hans and Jakob are riding. She can see Jakob scowling angrily as Hans is pressed against him from behind and chuckles softly.

_ ‘Glad I didn’t have to ride with either of them.’ _ Kiba thinks quietly and shudders a bit.  _ ‘I’d have hated every second of being so close to Hans… And Jakob would have spent more time fussing over me than making sure we got here in one piece.’ _ Kiba sighs in exasperation at the thoughts as Gunter slows his mount. Kiba dismounts from the steed and stands beside Gunter as she looks at a rickety bridge in front of them. As she stares at the bridge, Hans and Jakob dismount and approach her after tying up their horse.

“Wow… Is this it? The Bottomless Canyon?” Kiba asks awestruck as she stares across the canyon.

“Yes. It’s the natural boundary dividing Nohr and Hoshido,” Gunter speaks lowly as he follows Kiba’s gaze.

“It can’t really be bottomless, can it?” Kiba frowns as she speaks curiously.

“Let the eternal darkness below be your answer. Those who fall in never return… I truly despise this place. Something about the land here just isn’t right. The sky is always dark and foreboding, and lightning strikes all who fly across. This is clearly a place us mortals were never meant to enter. Normally we’d go around… But the fort that King Garon wants surveyed is right over there,” Gunter speaks grimly as he points across the bridge to the other side.

“Oh, it’s not so bad. Or perhaps I’m just happy to be outside in the fresh air! Compared to the inside of that fortress, this is downright exciting,” Kiba smiles as she speaks with a bit of a bounce in her voice. Gunter laughs gently and smiles as he looks down at Kiba.

“Ha! That certainly puts things in perspective, milady. Come let’s proceed,” Gunter speaks firmly as the other two finally join him and Kiba. Kiba nods and turns her gaze towards the other side of the canyon again. She goes to move forward, but stops and frowns as her eyes are drawn towards movement in front of the fort. Warriors pour out of it and Gunter grimaces unhappily. “Blast! It looks like this fort isn’t as abandoned as we thought. Why the devil is this place crawling with Hoshidans?”

“Hold on! Do not advance any farther, soldiers of Nohr,” a foot soldier yells as he blocks the group from crossing the bridge in front of them. At the fort a brown haired warrior steps forth from within the fort wearing clothing similar to Kaze’s and turns to face the group.

“Crossing that bridge is a violation of our border treaty. Turn back at once, or we’ll be forced to attack!” the brown haired warrior calls as he stands ready with his warriors. Kiba frowns as she eyes the man and the soldiers with their weapons drawn and grim expressions prepared for battle.

“What should we do, Lady Kiba?” Jakob speaks a bit nervously as he moves to Kiba’s side. Kiba looks grim as she turns away to face her own group.

“We’re not here to fight. I suppose we’ll have to turn back and report to Father,” Kiba speaks grimly as she gazes at the other three. Gunter nods grimly as he starts to tug on the reins of his mount to turn around.

“Wise decision, milady,” Gunter speaks approvingly as he looks down at Kiba. Hans grunts and starts to push past the three as Kiba narrows her eyes dangerously when he approaches.

“Who asked you, old man?” Hans speaks coldly as he continues towards Gunter and Kiba.

“What!?” Gunter speaks in outrage as he glares at Hans. Kiba places a hand on Ganglari’s pommel and prepares to draw it, but before she can, Hans moves with surprising quickness and shoulders his way past her and Gunter. He raises his ax as he advances on the unprepared foot soldier.

“Gyaah!” Hans yells as he brings his ax down on the man and fells him with one blow that caves the man’s armor in from the force of the blow.

“AAAAUGH!” the man yells as he’s struck down before falling limply off the blade of the ax.

“Ah ha ha! Die, scumbags!” Hans laughs almost gleefully as he brandishes his bloody ax in the air. The brown haired ninja grimaces at the sight of his man being felled and becomes angry.

“You’ll…pay for this!” the man yells and the soldiers around him rally to his cry. They advance on the group quickly as they move towards the other rope bridge. Kiba stares at the bloody ax in horror then rage as she grits her teeth angrily and seems to radiate a primal, otherworldly aura.

“Hans, what are you doing?! We had no reason to engage these troops!” Kiba yells in rage as she snarls. Hans snorts and doesn’t turn though Kiba can smell fear coming from the man as he stiffens ever so slightly from the anger in her voice. “We should have tried diplomacy first. We weren’t sent here to fight!” Kiba snarls as she tightens her grip on Ganglari. Hans smirks and turns towards Kiba with a wicked glint in his eyes and voice.

“Get with the program, weakling. Diplomacy is far from the Nohrian way,” Hans laughs deeply as he throws his head back in joy.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kiba speaks lowly as Gunter and Jakob watch the exchange and the approaching warriors cautiously.  _ ‘He couldn’t mean that Nohr would sooner kill than negotiate a treaty…. Could he?’ _ Kiba thinks grimly as for a moment her senses fall away as her demeanor shifts. A cold smile makes its way to her lips and she draws Ganglari with an eerie calmness. Hans laughs and Kiba can see the general of the Hoshidan warriors shouting orders as his troops charge towards the bridge. The intent of the orders is clear despite an ill-timed lightning strike and Hans laughter drowning out the orders. Kill the Norhians.

“Argh! Looks like there’s no getting out of this now. Get ready to fight, Lady Kiba,” Gunter speaks worriedly as he turns to face the oncoming warriors. Jakob and Gunter move closer to Kiba and form up protectively nearby, but step back when they see Kiba shaking with suppressed anger as her eyes blaze. Hans continues to laugh, but stops when he catches sight of the angry woman behind him. Kiba snarls and charges forward with a roar of rage as she leaps into the air and spins in the air to slice Ganglari across Hans’ back leaving a gaping wound where her blade struck. Hans howls in pain and squirms as Kiba leaps away from him with a hiss of rage.

“Fight on your own, scum. Pray the Hoshidans kill you in this fight because if they don’t and I see you after this I’ll make sure you suffer in the dungeons like you should have years ago,” Kiba speaks cruelly her eyes glowing as her voice deepens. Hans gulps and Jakob pulls out his staff to heal the wound Kiba made before stopping when Kiba glares at him. Jakob frowns slightly and nods as he moves to follow Kiba, leaving the wounded Hans to fend for himself. Kiba quickly moves towards the rope bridge that leads to an outcrop of rock that is isolated from the main pathway. Gunter grimaces as he and Jakob fight off two soldiers leaving them alive, but severely wounded before following after Kiba.

“Milady, see if you can find a Dragon Vein we can use to our advantage. Otherwise we will be outmatched if we try to take on the enemy’s position across the bridge,” Gunter speaks firmly as he and Jakob take up guard positions at the bridge. Kiba frowns as she nods and searches for the familiar pulse she’s felt since they arrived at the area. She darts towards the other end of the outcropping where she can feel the pulse strongest. She roars and spins into a kneeling position as she places two fingers on the ground. The ground shakes and rumbles before the rocks leap out towards the side of the canyon in front of the fort being guarded by the Hoshidans.

“Well done Milady,” Jakob praises Kiba as he and Gunter move to her side. Kiba nods silently and the three rush forward together as they charge the stunned warriors. As they run across the rock bridge Kiba can see Hans falling beneath an onslaught of warriors and scowls with rage boiling her blood.  _ ‘Good riddance. If it wasn’t for him this wouldn’t have happened…. These people wouldn’t have had to die if he hadn’t provoked them!’ _ Kiba thinks silently as Gunter and Jakob plow through the Hoshidans that meet them on the other side of the rock bridge.

Kiba huffs and leaps into the air before spinning over Gunter’s head as he runs down an archer that tries to shoot at Kiba when she’s in the air. Kiba lands lightly and blocks out the battle cries of Jakob and Gunter and the screams of pain that follow. Kiba moves forward quickly as she spins to strike with Ganglari at the captain of the fort. The two lock their weapons together as the ninja blocks with his shuriken.

“Do you even realize what you’ve done here today? Hoshido won’t stand for unprovoked attacks like this. Revenge will be ours!” the man yells as he pushes Kiba back. Kiba slides back a few feet and then leaps backwards to avoid a slash from one of the shuriken, but isn’t quite fast enough to avoid the bite of the second shuriken that’s thrown at her. She grits her teeth at the pain as she lands and tightens her grip on Ganglari as Jakob leaps forward to block a strike from another enemy she hadn’t noticed earlier. Kiba snarls as she darts past Jakob who finishes off the second attacker with Gunter’s help. Kiba roars angrily as she swings her blade around to lay flat against her arm as she leaps upwards at the last moment to avoid being struck by the ninja in front of her. The moment she lands she spins on the ball of her foot and slices Ganglari across the man’s back sending him forward with a gaping wound on his back. The man coughs weakly and falls still as Jakob and Gunter move to Kiba’s side and Jakob heals her before stepping away. Kiba looks around the battlefield grimly and stabs Ganglari into the ground from her frustration and feeling of failure.

“This wasn’t what I had in mind…but at least I’ve completed Father’s mission,” Kiba speaks sorrowfully as she stares at the ground and shakes a bit. A soft thump is heard from above the three and Kiba looks up to see a ninja with red hair and a scar over his right eye looking down at them. He has his arms crossed over his chest and his gaze is piercing and cold as he stares at Kiba in particular.

“You’re the leader of these troops? Pah. You’re a little girl,” he speaks unimpressed as he surveys the bodies that litter the battlefield. He narrows his eye seeing that only those who were sent across the rope bridge are dead while those Kiba fought against are only unconscious and heavily injured.

“Who are you?” Kiba frowns as she speaks seriously towards the man.

“My name is Saizo. I’ve come to claim your life,” Saizo speaks calmly and Kiba stiffens at the statement. She tightens her grip on Ganglari and scowls up at Saizo as she’s set on edge from the statement.

“Hey! Everyone! We’re still under attack!” Kiba calls out to alert Gunter and Jakob. The two are instantly set on edge and ready their weapons despite their fatigue though it doesn’t go unnoticed by Kiba.  _ ‘If they attack us, we’ll have to retreat… I’ll make sure those two are out of harm's way before I resort to anything else…’ _ Kiba thinks grimly as a calmness settles over her. Saizo stares down at Kiba with his narrowed eye feeling how calm she is about the situation she’s in with her allies.

“Destroy them!” Saizo speaks grimly and a moment later two more warriors appear from within the trees as Saizo prepares to engage Kiba.

“I won’t allow it!”

Kiba smiles hearing the voice and leaps backwards and into the air trusting the person who’s charging across the bridge with her life as Saizo drops down to strike at her. She spins in the air and as Saizo’s Shuriken try to bite into her leg, Xander charges between them and blocks the weapons with his lion shield. Saizo looks taken aback as Xander stands in front of him atop Alastor and Kiba lands gracefully behind the warhorse before letting out a sigh of relief.

“What?! This must be their real commander…” Saizo speaks grimly as he stares at Xander just out of reach of his sword.

“What’s going on here, Kiba?” Xander speaks calmly as he keeps his gaze on Saizo. Kiba smiles a bit and keeps a tight grip on Ganglari as she holds it at the ready.

“Xander! How did you know we were in trouble?” Kiba speaks happily as she turns hearing the familiar sound of hoofbeats on stone and the cry of an angry wyvern. She grins happily seeing Leo, Camilla, and Elise heading towards her and sighs in relief knowing she should be safe now. Leo smiles as he moves up behind Xander and speaks to Kiba.

“We’ve arrived just in time. Your luck never runs out, does it, Sister?” Kiba grins in response and looks behind Leo as Marzia flies close to the ground with Camilla on her back and stops in front of Kiba.

“Are you alright? I was so worried about you,” Camilla speaks fondly as she gazes at Kiba with worry in her eyes. Kiba smiles able to hear the underlying affection Camilla holds for her. Elise stops behind Camilla with a nervous, but strong gaze as she holds her staff close to her side.

“We’re all here for you, Kiba!” Elise calls out firmly as she gazes at the enemies worriedly. Kiba smiles widely and stays in her battle-ready stance as she gazes at Saizo.

“Thank you, everyone! Um, but before we get too carried away…we  _ are  _ under attack,” Kiba speaks worriedly as she looks around at the enemies that have approached them. Kiba watches in awe as Camilla’s worry seems to melt away and is quickly replaced by anger and coldness as she turns her gaze towards their enemies.

“Who dares attack my beloved Kiba? I’ll have their heads on a platter!” Camilla speaks ruthlessly as Marzia hisses sensing the change in Camilla’s mood.

“I’m not hurt Camilla,” Kiba speaks a bit nervously as she looks at Camilla having never really seen this side of her before.

“But, darling…it’s the thought that counts!” Camilla speaks warmly to Kiba before she urges Marzia around her brothers. She races passed Saizo and slams into the enemy ninja behind Saizo. One of them leaps backwards to avoid the initial strike, but Camilla smirks as her blade glows with frost and she swings it again. The warrior smirks thinking he’s safe before his eyes widen in shock as he’s impaled on a spike of ice. Kiba gazes at the war ax in awe and smiles a bit as she recognizes Arondite, Oath of Dragonsouls, an ax almost as powerful as Xander’s ancient blade, Siegfried. The difference between the two powerful weapons is that Arondite was created specifically for Camilla by the Ice Tribe due to a request made by King Garon when Camilla became a Malig Knight.

“I never knew Camilla could be so… ruthless…” Kiba murmurs lowly. Kiba gulps nervously as she watches Camilla turn Marzia back towards her siblings and Kiba’s party. Elise giggles beside Kiba and gives her a closed-eyed smile.

“Heehee! That’s right, you’ve never seen her on the battlefield before,” Elise says while still grinning. Kiba nods her eyes still on Camilla as Marzia hovers in her spot ready to charge forward the moment her rider asks her to.

“This is not going well…” Saizo speaks gravely as he breaks away from Xander. Kiba’s eyes drift back to the ninja and she subconsciously tightens her grip on Ganglari’s hilt. She stiffens seeing someone appear beside Saizo and looks at the female ninja grimly.

“Saizo! What’s wrong? What’s our status?” the woman speaks lowly as she stares down at the group with Saizo.

“I misjudged the situation. We’re outnumbered. Kagero, do we have anyone else on the way?” Saizo speaks grimly as he turns towards the female ninja, Kagero. Kiba frowns as she listens to the exchange and her pupils narrow as a low hiss escapes her lips. Xander and Elise look at Kiba worriedly hearing the hiss and watch as she bares her teeth as they’re unable to hear the two, but Kiba can hear them perfectly despite the distance.

“Affirmative, Lord Ryoma is right behind me,” Kagero speaks calmly as her gaze drifts from Saizo to the group below them. She stiffens and stares at Kiba who snarls and shakes slightly with anticipation. Kagero stares at the quivering Kiba who seems to quiver more when Ryoma’s name is said.

“Brother…..” Kiba whispers the word and Xander looks at her worriedly. Kiba hasn’t removed her eyes from Kagero as she sheathes Ganglari. Saizo doesn’t notice the odd behavior of the burgundy haired woman as he chuckles lowly.

“Ahh… Then I think this battle is as good as won,” Saizo speaks confidently as he chuckles. Xander looks grim as he turns his gaze to Leo and the two share a single calculating look.

“It looks like more Hoshidan reinforcements are on the way,” Xander says as he looks to Leo for his input.

“Indeed… What should we do?” Leo defers the decision to Xander, who frowns at the question. Xander’s gaze drifts to Kiba who is still quivering with emotion as her hands flex in front of her.

“Well, Kiba is safe, and the fort’s condition has been evaluated. There’s no reason to engage Hoshido further at this point. Kiba, you take the lead with Gunter. We’ll follow close behind,” Xander speaks firmly and watches Kiba. Kiba seems to jolt a bit hearing Xander say her name and blinks as she flexes her hands almost like she wants to engage Ryoma and the ninjas.

“As you command, brother,” Kiba hisses the response and looks reluctant as she steps away from him, but her eyes never stray from the enemies. She steps back to Gunter’s side and finally tears her gaze away from the nervous Kagero and calm Saizo. She nods at Gunter who flinches seeing the steel in the normally calm, kind red eyes. She and Gunter take off at a sprint and cross back over the rock bridge before heading over the rope bridges. On the last section of the rope bridge, the two pause as Kiba stops and looks at Gunter much calmer now.

“Gunter, have you seen Jakob? He was here a second ago…” Kiba speaks almost worriedly as she frowns a bit from having lost sight of her butler.

“I’m sure he’s right behind us. Now hurry up. I can’t stand being on the bridge a moment longer,” Gunter speaks nervously as his steed paws at the wooden boards of the bridge impatiently. Kiba nods and the two prepare to cross the bridge, but before they can take another step, Hans runs up and blocks their path with a grim scowl on his face.

“Don’t worry--you won’t have to stand there much longer,” Hans speaks firmly as he smirks a bit. Kiba’s pupils narrow dangerously as she gazes at the man responsible for this entire encounter. She begins to tremble with rage as her hands curl at her side almost like claws.

“Hans!” Kiba hisses the name dangerously as her piercing gaze lands on the man. He flinches seeing such a primordial rage within the red eyes of the young woman in front of him. He quickly hides it to avoid letting the two see how unnerved he is by Kiba’s gaze.

“What is the meaning of this?” Gunter speaks firmly as he scowls at the man.

“Less talk. More death,” Hans speaks grimly as he grins madly at the two. Before Kiba can move to intercept him, Hans dashes forward and attacks Gunter before he can defend himself. Gunter stumbles back from the quick onslaught of attacks, unable to retaliate as Hans pushes him back further. Kiba starts forward, but freezes hearing an ominous creak of wood. Gunter looks at Kiba in fear as Kiba watches paralyzed as the boards beneath Gunter give way and he plummets into the gorge below. Kiba reaches her hand out just as Gunter disappears below the bridge and only snatches air as she releases a wordless cry of fear and outrage. Hans grins and laughs as he watches Kiba stare into the depths of the gorge in shock.

“Hans…. Why are you doing this? Your own ally…”. Kiba speaks grimly as she straightens, having been shocked out of her state by the laugh. She keeps her head down, her hair hiding her eyes from Hans sight, but her tone carries a note of promise in it that makes Hans shiver from how dangerous it sounds.

“Aww, did I knock your babysitter into the ditch? Here--you can meet up with him at the bottom!” Hans laughs maniacally as he lifts his ax to attack Kiba. Kiba lifts her gaze and her red eyes pierce Hans making him freeze in place from the murderous intent in them. Kiba lifts her right arm into the air and roars as it transforms into a spear in response to the primal rage in Kiba’s blood.

“You’ll pay for this!” Kiba roars in rage as she swings the spear at the stunned Hans and slashes him across the chest leaving a long, but shallow wound going diagonally from his left hip to his right shoulder.

“What?! What kind of...freak...are you?” Hans speaks with fear lacing his voice as he stumbles back and clutches the wound. Kiba roars in response as her hand transforms back to normal, but she grows horns instead as her face transforms and attacks again. Hans stumbles backwards barely missing being skewered again as Kiba’s hand transforms into a maw and grazes his ax arm, ripping the armor off and leaving shallow wounds along the skin. Kiba leaps backwards as she returns to normal and stands in a crouch with a snarl as she prepares to attack again. “It can’t be…” Hans speaks nervous as Kiba hisses angrily.

“I want answers, Hans! Why are you doing this? Why did you provoke the Hoshidans? And why did you kill Gunter?” Kiba roars as she digs her hand into the wood of the bridge and grips Ganglari tighter. “Answer me or die!” Kiba roars in rage as she leaps towards Hans. She barely misses the man when he dodges backwards to avoid being struck by Ganglari.

“Just following orders. King Garon’s orders,” Hans speaks calmly as he gazes at Kiba. Kiba stops for a split second and straightens as her eyes blaze with a desire to rip the man she calls Father apart. She laughs deeply and Hans steps back nervously as Kiba raises a hand and covers her right eye. Hans take the opportunity to escape as Kiba stands on the bridge and smiles darkly as she continues to laugh deeply. Before she can go after Hans, Ganglari glows brightly and pulses with ancient magic. Kiba falls silent and her eyes turn towards the sword before it drags her down the same hole that Gunter fell down.

“Nooo!” Kiba roars in anger as she plummets into the gorge. Hans watches looking shocked and grim, so he doesn’t make a move to stop the light blue haired girl who dashes past him and dives into the gorge after Kiba. Kiba spins as she plummets into the gorge unable to scream from the shock of having been dragged into the gorge so suddenly. Lilith tucks her arms against her sides to increase her speed as she hurtles towards Kiba looking worried.

“My kin, my gods, my blood… Dragons grant me strength! Great Moro, I beseech you!” Lilith cries out loudly and glows brightly. She transforms into a small blue, red, and white dragon that plummets to catch Kiba. She catches the burgundy haired girl and then shoots upwards as she flies past the bridges and up into the sky. Kiba holds on tight to Lilith and yelps softly as she looks at her.

“Lilith? Is that you? What…  _ are _ you?” Kiba speaks in shock as she clings to Lilith tightly.

“Lady Kiba… I knew this day would come eventually. This may come as a shock, but I am not a human,” Lilith speaks softly as the orb she clings to glows brighter.

“Well, I can see that. Are you a dragon?” Kiba speaks more calmly now as she gazes at Lilith curiously.

“Yes, this is my true form. You’ve seen it before. Do you remember? That strange bird you rescued in the barn…” Lilith speaks fondly of the memory. She remembers how she had been injured and collapsed in the barn only to be found by the burgundy haired princess. The burgundy haired princess nursed Lilith back to health and cared for her for weeks. The kindness shown by the young princess was enough to prompt the dragon to take on a human form and become a servant to the princess hoping to one day pay her back for the kindness she was shown.

“That… was you…?” Kiba asks curiously.

“It was. Once I recovered, I was able to take human form. You were so kind to me that I decided to remain a human so that I might serve you. But now I have used a power that goes beyond the capacity of a human body. I will not be able to return to that form,” Lilith speaks softly and pauses to let the information sink in. “I don’t mind, though. The most important thing to me is that you’re safe…”

Lilith falls silent afterwards and continues up over the gorge. As the two fly higher a bolt of lightning strikes at the two causing Lilith to yelp in fear and dive back towards the gorge. Kiba yelps at the sudden change in direction and clings to Lilith tighter. The two plummet into the gorge and Kiba takes a shaky breath as she looks into the gorge.

“Lilith! Be careful! Drop me if you must… I won’t have you sacrifice yourself for me!” Kiba cries out in worry for the small dragon. Lilith frowns a bit at the statement and continues with her descent as she refuses to do what was asked of her.

“First Dragons, I call on you. Grant us access to the astral plane!” Lilith calls out. The ground below the two glows with a blue light before Lilith disappears into it with Kiba. 

“What just happened?!” Kiba speaks in shock as she clings to Lilith. Lilith doesn’t respond and slowly descends towards a plot of land below them. She comes to a stop above the ground and Kiba hesitantly releases the dragon to stand on her own. She looks around the area curiously as her red eyes take in the sights. She frowns seeing gorges all around the area. “Where...are we?”

“This is a world parallel to the one in which you live, Lady Kiba. It is known as the astral plane,” Lilith speaks calmly and smiles at Kiba. Kiba tilts her head and turns her gaze towards the castle in the distance.

“How were you able to get us here?”

“The First Dragons have granted us the power in inhabit this dimension. Under their protection, we are safe here. Oh! Allow me to prepare a place for you to rest…” Lilith speaks softly still smiling. The small dragon closes her eyes and after a few moments Kiba can feel a familiar pull of magic as a treehouse appears nearby. Kiba frowns a bit as she flexes her hands slightly before looking at Lilith curiously.

“Did...did you just use a Dragon Vein?” Kiba speaks curiously as she looks at the treehouse. Lilith nods happily and smiles as she circles around Kiba before landing on her shoulder and nuzzling her.

“Yes. The power of the First Dragons flows freely in this realm. You should know that space and time operate differently here as well…” Lilith speaks softly as she smiles. Kiba smiles back gently and opens her arms for Lilith to settle there and nuzzle her stomach.

“I have so much to learn… Is there anyone else here?” Kiba speaks curiously. Kiba raises a hand and gently rubs Lilith’s head as she smiles at the dragon. Lilith looks thoughtful before shaking her head gently.

“No, we are alone. There’s no one left here…” Lilith speaks sadly as she leans into Kiba’s hand. Kiba grimaces gently and holds Lilith close.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to invoke any bad memories.”

“It’s okay, Kiba. I’m not lonely as long as I have you in my life. Now...you should get some rest,” Lilith speaks and nudges Kiba gently. Kiba smiles softly and nods as she releases Lilith and heads towards the treehouse. Lilith smiles and wiggles out of Kiba’s arms before she reaches the ladder.

“Thank you for this Lilith. I’ll see you in the morning. Okay?” Kiba says softly. Lilith nods and flies off to a temple nearby. Kiba watches Lilith fly off before climbing up into the treehouse. She looks around the area again and releases a soft breath before stepping into her room and looking around curiously. Inside the room there is a dresser, table, two normal chairs, a padded chair for reading, a queen sized bed, and a bookshelf. Kiba tilts her head curiously as she sees an area that’s closed off and moves towards the door. She looks in the room and sighs seeing an empty area. She closes the door and examines the bookshelf before picking out a book to read before bed. She places it on her bed and starts to remove her armor, placing it on an armor rack hidden beside the bookshelf.

Kiba smiles gently and runs her hand over the armor before sighing as she lays on the bed. Kiba opens the book and scans through the pages of armor designs. She eventually falls asleep with the lights on as the book covers her eyes. She breathes slowly and smiles to herself in her sleep.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning Kiba and Lilith meet outside the temple as Kiba adjusts her armor and cape carefully. She smiles at Lilith and sighs softly as she stops in front of the small dragon. Lilith smiles back at Kiba and flies around her before nuzzling the Princess’ side. Kiba giggles softly and pats Lilith’s head before the dragon pulls away to float in front of her.

“How are you feeling, Kiba? I know this is a lot to take in,” Lilith speaks worriedly. She smiles and circles around Kiba slowly as she looks her over. Kiba giggles and smiles kindly at Lilith.

“Yes, it is. But I feel much better now. My wounds seem to have healed already. And my mind is racing! I have so many new questions about this world…” Kiba speaks excitedly. Lilith giggles softly and Kiba joins her with a small laugh.

“All in good time. For now, some business remains in the other world.” Lilith keeps a small smile as she circles Kiba again. Kiba nods and bows towards Lilith in understanding and her expression becomes more serious.

“Yes, you’re right. I can’t relax until I know everyone made it home safely,” Kiba speaks seriously, looking grim. Lilith nods in understanding and becomes serious as well.

“Of course. There is just one thing you should know before you go back. When I open the portal, you will return to the same location you came from this time. This means you’ll arrive right on the Hoshidan border. There may be soldiers lying in wait for you…” Lilith says worriedly. Kiba nods in understanding and smiles as she checks her armor carefully one last time.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be ready for them, Lilith,” Kiba smiles as she speaks.

“Very well. Then I will open the gate,” Lilith says and prepares to open the gate. Kiba nods and the gate opens beneath Kiba’s feet. Kiba closes her eyes due to the bright light and when she opens them she’s standing in the middle of the gorge with Ganglari in her hand. Kiba frowns as she looks around slowly and moves towards the edge to get a better look at the area.

“I’m back, but… where is everyone?” Kiba speaks curiously as she frowns. Kiba tilts her head and starts to turn hearing someone coming up behind her.

“You’re mine, Nohrian!” a female voice calls out. Kiba frowns recognizing the voice and turns towards it only to be struck at the base of her skull. Kiba slumps forward and is caught by two strong arms that wrap around her waist to keep her from plummeting into the gorge. Kiba manages to catch a glimpse of black armor shortly before she blacks out.

Rinkah sighs as Kiba’s cloaked friend catches the unconscious Kiba and holds her close. Rinkah watches the woman carefully as she picks Kiba up and cradles her in her arms. Rinkah turns and leaves as the cloaked woman follows her obediently and stays close to the Flame Tribe warrior’s side.

“Why are you helping me take her?” Rinkah speaks suspiciously, eyes narrowing. The woman tilts her head before sighing.

“I have my orders and they do not concern you,” The woman says lowly. Rinkah frowns more wondering what her orders actually are since she is almost certain that Kiba didn’t order this. Rinkah doesn’t comment and leads the way to her home and crosses back into Hoshidan territory. When they reach a cottage, the woman steps inside and lays Kiba down on some furs as Rinkah sets about creating a small fire and making dinner. The warrior sits on her legs and looks down at Kiba as she waits patiently for her to wake.  _ ‘I wonder if she really is the missing princess…. and why this woman is so loyal to her.’ _ Rinkah thinks as she idly stirs the pot of food in front of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, criticism, kudos, and any other feedback welcome!


	3. Chapter 3: A Warrior's Test

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiba is taken to Hoshido where she learns many things, and perhaps makes a few new allies amongst them.

_ It is a cold night with stars shining brightly overhead. A young girl who looks like Kiba sits on the window sill and stares at the stars. She turns her head to look behind her and gazes fondly at the four sleeping forms behind her. She leans forward to rest her chin in her palm as she stares out the window. A rock comes out of the darkness and lightly hits the window. The young girl smiles excitedly and opens the window quickly. _

_ The girl climbs out the window and down the side of the house to stand in a back alley behind the house. A cloaked child stands in the shadows and the two embrace quickly in a loving hug. They pull away after a few moments and share happy smiles. The cloaked child pulls off her hood and long burgundy hair shines in the moonlight. The other girl takes the cloak and her hair turns black as night as the cloak removes a spell used to change the color of her hair. _

_ “How are they little sister?” Kiba asks softly. The other girl grins and giggles happily as she pulls the cloak on. _

_ “They’re resting now. Mother Mikoto and Sumeragi are downstairs together. They’re speaking about seeing King Garon again,” the black haired girl responds. Kiba smiles and nods as she hugs her slightly younger sister happily. “She said she was worried about Father yesterday… I think she’s afraid he’s going to find us.” _

_ “If he does then we’ll protect the people we love, little sister. I won’t let anyone hurt you, but we’re not strong enough to stop him now. That’s why we have to do this in secret. We can’t let the others know there are two of us. Not yet, but I know there will be a day when we can show them,” Kiba says softly. The younger girl laughs quietly and smiles at Kiba. _

_ “You’re only a year older than me, but you’re so certain that we can stop him. You know it’s kinda odd how similar we look. The only difference is the color of our hair. Midnight black and burgundy. If I didn’t know better I would say that we’re twins,” the younger girl says. Kiba laughs gently and nods in understanding as their mother once said the same thing. Kiba waves her sister off and climbs back into the room as her sister watches the six year old child masquerade to be a five year old. _

_ The scene changes and Kiba is being carried by someone as the sound of fighting fills the air. Kiba releases a pitiful whine feeling a dark power in the area. There’s a loud shout and in the next moment Kiba is on the ground grasping at stones. She sees flames flicker in front of her and rolls to the side as she takes off down a back alley. She slides underneath another phantom warrior and winces as she’s burned. She hurries away and into a clearing where she sees a monster taking the form of a graying warrior in black and gold armor. Kiba stiffens recognizing the monster as one of the things that obeys her father. She tries to flee, but the thing has already spotted her and smirks evilly. The beast advances on Kiba as she flees and trips on the ground, rolling to a stop beside a building. _

_ The scene changes again and now Kiba is sitting at a table in Castle Krakenburg. Garon lets the girl sit in his lap and laughs when Kiba looks at her siblings excitedly. Camilla, Leo, and Xander sit around the two and listen fondly as Kiba talks enthusiastically about her adventure in the garden, meaning her avoidance of classes to look at the flowers. Kiba pauses when Garon laughs and looks at his bright, kind eyes feeling safe as she smiles. She looks down at the Nohr royals and grins to the young Elise playing on the floor. Garon smiles and sets her down as she hurries off to play with Elise and is joined shortly by Camilla. Xander and Leo chuckle as they watch the three play one of Elise’s games and Kiba’s eyes shine brightly. Camilla leads Kiba and Elise to their rooms as the scene shifts abruptly again. Kiba pauses outside the doors presumably leading to her room to hug Camilla tightly. _

_ “Thank you Camilla,” Kiba murmurs softly. Camilla looks confused, but hugs back tightly. Kiba pulls away without saying anything else and slips into her room. Once inside her eyes find the darkest corner of her room and she smiles brightly at her little sister. The two embrace in a tight hug and Kiba holds the midnight black haired girl at arm’s length. “No one saw you come here right?” _

_ “Nope. Do you think we should go back to our plan?” the girl asks. Kiba looks thoughtful and shakes her head no. _

_ “We should wait a little longer, though I really wish I could get out of the castle more. For now we have to wait until I’m not being watched as carefully. Then we can go back to our journeys. Are you gonna go back to Cheve again or are you planning on visiting the mountains?” Kiba asks. The girl giggles and smiles as she places a finger to her lips. _

_ “It’s a secret sis, but I’ll be back in two months just like always.” Kiba smiles and nods in understanding before moving to her closet to change. Her sister sits on the large comfy bed and the two lay down together. “Do you remember what happened that day?” Kiba sighs and shakes her head painfully slow. _

_ “No. I think I’ve blocked the memory… Or our Father did something to me,” Kiba responds. The girl nods having already been gone when the attack happened, but heard news of it when she was in Cheve again. The two had found each other again only five months after the attack took place and had decided that for the time being they would change the plan. There had been no issues yet, but they still wanted to be safe. Kiba closes her tired eyes to sleep, but instead of the darkness she expects a light seems to shine in her eyes becoming brighter and brighter. _

Kiba wakes, sitting up immediately alert when she realizes she doesn’t know where she is. Her eyes travel around the hut and take in the sight of fur before settling on Rinkah. Rinkah smiles a bit and continues making a pot of food as Kiba’s warrior sits at her side. Kiba manages to see beneath the hood and catches a glimpse of a fond, content smile that is hidden from Rinkah’s view by the hood.

“Ah, you’re awake. Sorry about that bump on your head,” Rinkah teases Kiba a bit and keeps her smirk. Kiba blinks slowly and shifts to sit with her legs crossed in front of her and her hands on her lap.

“I thought it was you. You’re from the Flame Tribe, right? Where are we?” Kiba says curiously. Rinkah’s smirk falls away and she becomes serious, surprised at how calm Kiba is in this situation.

“Yes, I am Rinkah. This is a Flame Tribe village within Hoshido’s territory. I’m going to hand you over to the Hoshidan authorities,” Rinkah responds. Kiba nods in understanding and clasps her hands in her lap as her gaze stays on Rinkah.

“I see. I suppose they’ll want to hear an explanation for the unprovoked attack. And then they’ll probably execute me,” Kiba says and sighs softly. The warrior beside Rinkah laughs and Kiba smiles before joining her as Rinkah looks at the two curiously.

“I don’t think so,” Rinkah says and frowns at the two. Kiba eventually calms down and smiles at Rinkah as she shifts to rest her chin in the palm of her hand.

“I’ll trust you for now Rinkah. You have new orders. Watch and wait,” Kiba speaks lowly and the woman beside Rinkah straightens with a dutiful nod.

“Understood, Lady Kiba. I will wait for further orders from a distance, but will always be nearby if you need me,” the woman says seriously. Kiba nods and the three jolt as a knock comes from the front door. Kiba and Rinkah turn towards the door as the cloaked woman stands and moves to stand out of sight in the shadows after bowing slightly towards Kiba.

“Gods... they’re here already, aren’t they?” Kiba says nervously. Rinkah nods and stands as Kiba follows her and takes a shaky breath before looking calm and determined as her red eyes flash.

“Yes. It’s time to go,” Rinkah says softly. Kiba nods and follows Rinkah out of the hut as the cloaked woman waits for the two to leave before slipping out after them. To avoid being spotted in the white landscape, she turns her cloak inside out and lets the white fur hide her from sight and drag along the ground to avoid leaving footprints. Kiba follows Rinkah and ends up walking beside her as the two approach a green haired ninja. Kiba’s eyes narrow slightly as she looks at the man.

“We meet again. Kaze, right?” Kiba speaks a bit uncertainly towards the ninja. Kaze smiles and kneels before bowing his head towards Kiba respectfully. Kiba doesn’t look surprised as she watches him calmly.

“Yes. I’m glad we found you, Princess Kiba,” Kaze says fondly. Kiba doesn’t look surprised or fazed as she turns her gaze towards Rinkah.

“I’m missing something, aren’t I Rinkah?” Kiba asks softly. Rinkah simply looks at Kiba and doesn’t respond. Kaze frowns as he stands and looks at Kiba a bit irritated for having been ignored in favor of the Flame Tribe warrior.

“Please come with me. All will be explained,” Kaze says lowly. Kiba looks at Kaze again and nods silently before the three set off with the warrior following silently behind them, going unnoticed.

It takes the group four days to arrive in the capital of Hoshido, Shirasagi. Upon their arrival they are immediately led to the throne room where a tall man with long brown hair stands calmly. The man smiles as Kaze moves to kneel in front of him the same way he knelt in front of Kiba a few days ago. The man leaves his arms crossed over his chest, but he seems very friendly and Kiba is instantly reminded of Xander as she gazes at the man. Kiba’s eyes eventually drift away from the man and take in the sights of the throne room noting the windows, exits, and large gold throne with steps leading up to it finally realizing that the man only looks so tall because he’s standing on one of the steps.

“Welcome back, Kaze. Good work,” the man says. Kaze smiles and keeps his head bowed respectfully.

“Thank you, Lord Ryoma.”

Kiba is instantly alert hearing the name and her eyes settle on Ryoma as her hands curl at her sides nervously. She runs her tongue over her lips as they’re suddenly too dry for her to be comfortable. She subconsciously steps towards Rinkah, and manages to avoid drawing attention to herself as she does so.

“Did...did he just say Lord  _ Ryoma _ ?” Kiba whispers lowly.

Rinkah smiles and nods as she whispers back to Kiba with a small smile, “Yes, this is the high prince of Hoshido, Lord Ryoma.” Kiba gulps and nods nervously as her eyes land back on Ryoma, but are more serious now.

“I understand,” Kiba says lowly. She stiffens when Ryoma looks away from Kaze and stares at the burgundy haired woman with a critical, analyzing gaze. Kiba’s hands twitch slightly and she meets Ryoma’s gaze with a calm one of her own. “Well? What are you waiting for? If you’re going to execute me, please get on with it.”

Kiba continues to stare at Ryoma as the man frowns at the statement and stares back. He doesn’t respond and after only a few seconds his gaze travels behind Kiba and he smiles softly. Kiba frowns and sniffs the air picking up a new scent as she turns towards it, ready to fight if she must. She frowns and watches as a black haired woman walks towards her and turns to fully face her as she is still sniffing the air curiously. Kiba frowns as the woman stops in front of her and lets her red eyes look over the white, gold, and blue fabric associated with royalty of Hoshido. Kiba frowns more at the sad, yet happy look the woman wears and slowly relaxes as the familiar scent of the woman calms her a bit.

“I cannot believe it is really you…” the woman says softly. Kiba frowns with narrowed eyes as she stares at the woman’s black hair.

“I’m sorry, do we know each other?” Kiba almost hisses as she speaks, choosing to feign ignorance to try and protect the woman. She manages to play it off as nerves as she tilts her head and shifts from foot to foot. The woman closes her eyes at the sound of Kiba’s voice looking pained as she clasps her hands together tightly in front of her.

“Oh, I’ve missed you so much! Come here, Kiba, my sweet child!” the woman says lowly. Kiba stiffens at the statement and stands stiffly as the woman rushes forward with a grace from years in court and embraces the burgundy haired woman. Kiba stands frozen in place as she feels the woman start to cry gently against her. She curls her hands into fists at her side to avoid accidentally cutting the woman with her gauntlets, her jaw opening and closing silently from the shock.

“Your sweet child?! What are you talking about?!” Kiba yells in shock when she finally recovers enough to find her voice, but it is weak and low. “That’s not possible…” Kiba whispers lowly and the woman continues to cry without responding. Kiba eventually wills herself to place her hands on the woman’s shoulders and pushes her off gently before using one hand to wipe away the last of the tears. “Please stop crying…. I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I want to try and understand…” Kiba consoles the woman as best she can feeling incredibly awkward in the situation. After a few more minutes the woman calms and stands beside Ryoma with red rimmed eyes. Kiba stands across from the two with Rinkah at her back and Kaze behind Rinkah.

“Oh, my poor Kiba. It’s a sad story. When you were very young, you were abducted by forces from Nohr,” The woman says softly and looks on the verge of tears again at the memory. She wipes them away before they can fall and takes a shaky breath as she continues. “I am your mother, Mikoto. All this time, I didn’t know if I’d ever see you again!” Kiba frowns and shakes her head as she clenches her fists at her side.

“But King Garon is my father! None of what you’re saying makes sense,” Kiba says lowly as she shakes her head in disbelief.

“It must be quite a shock, but I assure you that she speaks the truth. I am your older brother, Ryoma,” Ryoma says fondly as he moves closer to Mikoto. Kiba shakes her head in disbelief as she frowns more.

“No, no, no… Xander is my older brother! Leo, Elise, and Camilla are my siblings…” Kiba says lowly. Kiba’s head snaps up to meet Ryoma’s gaze as he scoffs with contempt.

“Are those the Nohrian royals? They’re not your real family,” Ryoma says harshly. Kiba clenches her fists and Rinkah jumps a bit hearing a soft snarl come from the woman’s lips as she seems to be struggling with herself to avoid attacking Ryoma. Rinkah frowns more and casually brushes her hand against Kiba’s side as she calms slightly from the action. “I still remember the day you were taken. In those days, there was tension between Hoshido and Nohr, but no full-blown war. Not until Garon lured King Sumeragi--our father-- to Cheve under false pretenses. He said it was for a peace conference. Ha! His real plan was to murder our father in cold blood. And to make matters even worse...he kidnapped you.” Ryoma continues angrily as his voice rises with outrage and anger before falling in sadness.

“No. That’s just not possible…” Kiba shakes her head calmer now, but still irritated at having her family be insulted in front of her.

“You really don’t remember any of this? Not even a single memory?” Ryoma sighs heavily as he speaks. Kiba frowns and closes her eyes before shaking her head no.

“No. Honestly, I have only the vaguest memories from my early childhood…” Kiba speaks hesitantly and frowns. She grimaces and places a hand to her head suddenly feeling dizzy as she remembers a few choppy, hazy moments from her childhood. “There are times when I can sense something beneath the surface… A blurry image. Like a stone at the bottom of a lake, shimmering and ethereal. But that’s it. Nothing of substance.” Kiba frowns as she shakes her head gently and gazes at Ryoma. Guilt deepens her frown as she lies to Ryoma and has to remind herself why she lies by glancing down and behind herself to where her cloaked ally is hidden.

“Well, I can’t imagine the Nohrian royals would share much of your past with you. I know this is a lot to take in,” Ryoma says before being cut off as the doors to the room are slammed open. Kiba turns and her eyes follow a warrior who rushes up to Ryoma and bows in front of him.

“Lord Ryoma! I have an urgent message. We’re under attack from the north!” the warrior says seriously. Kiba frowns at the news and looks at Rinkah, her eyes ablaze with sudden seriousness. She quietly steps away from the group, keeping her movements slow and minimal to not draw attention.

“No! Hinoka and Sakura are in that area right now!” Ryoma shouts with worry as he grimaces. Kiba’s eyes narrow more, subconsciously letting her hand drift to Ganglari as Rinkah and Mikoto watch her.

“Yes, milord. I’ve been told that they’re working to help evacuate the villagers,” the warrior reports. Kiba’s eyes drift to Rinkah and she nods subtly to the Flame Tribe warrior, who nods back stepping away, before moving around to Kiba’s side.

“Very well. We’ll need to provide support. I’ll leave immediately,” Ryoma says seriously before his gaze drifts to Kiba. He pauses seeing Kiba already leaving and jolts as Mikoto smiles and watches the young woman leave, not having raised a hand to stop her. Kaze jolts looking confused that the two managed to leave without him noticing and frowns. “What in the…” Ryoma trails off and shakes his head as he hurries after the two woman. Kaze bows to Mikoto and takes off after the three as he quickly falls into step behind Kiba while Rinkah walks at her left shoulder obediently.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

In the village under attack a young girl with pink hair stands with her back against a mountain. A Pegasus Knight hovers in front of her and twirls her white lance nervously before running her free hand through her bright red hair. The small priestess looks on the verge of tears as she favors her right side.

“Sorry I’m slowing us down. Of all the times to sprain an ankle…,” the pink haired priestess says. The Pegasus Knight smiles as she reaches down to pat the girl on the head fondly.

“Don’t worry about it, Sakura. We’ll be okay. These stupid beasts don’t stand a chance against me,” the knight says confidently looking determined to protect her younger sister. Sakura sniffles quietly and looks up at the knight.

“I hope you’re right…” Sakura responds before crying out in fear as a beast’s shadow falls over her. The Knight lets loose a battle cry and thrusts her lance into the enemy as it erupts in flames and disappears.

“Do your worse, monsters. I promise I can be meaner than you!” the Pegasus Knight yells challengingly. The priestess sighs in relief and smiles nervously.

“Be careful Big Sister Hinoka….” Sakura speaks softly as she watches Hinoka worriedly.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

“Hold strong, Sisters! I’m coming for you!” Ryoma shouts his battle cry as he and the others arrive at the area. Kiba frowns and tsks as the man charges into the battle without a plan or at least without sharing one with the others. After a few moments Kiba is joined by Rinkah and Kaze as the two approach from the nearby village.

“The nearby village has been alerted to the threat, Kiba. They have barricaded the village and hidden in their homes,” Kaze reports. Kiba nods and draws Ganglari as her pupils narrow and she hisses in excitement.

“Good. Rinkah stay close to me as we head through these enemies. Kaze you’re in charge of covering our backs and making sure no one gets Rinkah and I from behind. Understood?” Kiba orders.

“Yes Lady Kiba!” the two warriors respond as one. Rinkah moves to Kiba’s side. Then they dash down the hill and engage the masked monsters. Kiba and Rinkah release battle cries that draw the attention of two of the beasts who turn towards the two. The monsters roar as they move to engage them. Kiba roars in anger as she swings Ganglari in an arc and catches the beast’s fist on the blade blocking the attack and slicing it open. Rinkah leaps over Kiba when she crouches and roars slamming her club into the enemy's’ face. With a burst of fire from the club the beast falls backwards and disappears being consumed by black flames. Kaze launches a shuriken over the two’s heads and impales the second enemy allowing Kiba to swing her sword upwards and end it with a quick blow to the throat. Kiba huffs and glares at the hills around her before her eyes widen slightly and she smirks. Kiba laughs and darts forward as she stops at the foot of the hill and stabs her sword into the ground.

“Fall,” Kiba speaks grimly as the other two watch curiously. Kiba gasps feeling the already familiar pull of a Dragon Vein activating as the ground shakes. Rinkah and Kaze stumble slightly as the ground shakes then watch in shock as the hill in front of Kiba crumbles to pieces. Kiba roars as the beasts tumble into the debri only slightly hurt.

“Did you see that? The entire hill just disintegrated! Is that the power of a Dragon Vein? I had no idea…” Rinkah speaks in awe as she moves to Kiba’s side.

“To harness the ancient dragon powers is truly a magnificent gift. Yet I wonder if even the royals who wield that power can fully control it… Still strategically using Dragon Veins could be the key to this rescue,” Kaze speaks softly. Kiba roars and startles Kaze into action as he launches his Shuriken at the faceless enemies in front of them and injure them as Kiba and Rinkah charge in and finish them off quickly. Kiba roars again and darts towards another hill with Kaze and Rinkah on her heels as she races towards the next hill and uses another Dragon Vein to crumble it. Kiba pauses and snarls as her gaze lands on two girls who were hiding behind the wall along with an enemy charging towards them.

“I think I see someone over there. It might be the princesses. We should get close and try to speak to one of them. Rinkah, Kaze. Go take care of the other enemy. I’ll go check on the Princesses. I’m sure you’ll be able to do this. I trust you both,” Kiba smiles as she speaks to the two. Rinkah looks taken aback by the statement and nods mutely before charging off after the other enemy. Kiba smiles and breaks away towards the knight on a Pegasus. “Hey, are you alright? We’re here to help.”

“Yeah, we’re fine. Who are you? I thought I knew most of my brother’s troops,” Hinoka speaks curiously as she gazes down at Kiba. “Anyway, I appreciate the help, but it’s really not necessary. It takes more than a few dozen 800-pound monsters to bring me down!”

“Well, I’m glad you’re feeling confident. Just know that we’ve got your back,” Kiba laughs gently at the confidence coming from Hinoka. Kiba grins and turns to dart back towards Rinkah and Kaze to help them.

“Hey, wait a second!” Hinoka calls out. Kiba pauses and looks back at Hinoka curiously. “I didn’t mean to be dismissive. Thank you for coming all the way out here. I owe you one… So take this. You can use it in a pinch to heal your wounds. Now really, don’t worry about me. I’m at my best in situations like this!” Hinoka smiles for the first time and Kiba stares at her and the offered vulnerary before smiling. She takes it and smiles at Hinoka.

“Thank you. I’ll use this wisely,” Kiba smiles and nods.

“Hey, you never did tell me your name,” Hinoka stops Kiba again. Kiba blushes in embarrassment despite the situation and offers an embarrassed smile with a soft laugh.

“Oh, sorry. I’m Kiba. Nice to meet you,” Kiba says before quickly taking off to help Rinkah. Hinoka chokes on air and stares after Kiba in shock as it dawns on her who that woman is.

“Kiba? Kiba?! This can’t be a coincidence!” Hinoka whispers lowly and watches as Kiba leaps over Rinkah to block an attack against the woman. Kiba roars as she twists her blade and slashes across the enemy cutting him in two. Kiba huffs and wipes her brow before offering her hand to Rinkah to help her up. Rinkah takes the offered hand and smiles softly as she nods her thanks to Kiba. Kiba grins and nods back before looking for other enemies. She sighs not seeing anymore and sheathes her blade.

Hinoka hurries to Sakura’s side and checks her over as Ryoma finally arrives and watches in confusions as Kiba tends to Rinkah’s wounds. Kiba notices Ryoma’s gaze and scowls at the man before focusing on Rinkah as she wraps her arm to cover a shallow wound. Hinoka smiles when she sees Ryoma and leads Sakura over to him.

“What happened here, Hinoka?” Ryoma frowns as he speaks. Hinoka turns her gaze towards Kiba and murmurs lowly as she watches Rinkah lightly smack Kiba on the shoulder before the two laugh like old friends, despite having only met a few days prior.

“She happened… She destroyed the hills to reach us and checked on us before saving Sakura and Rinkah from the last beast,” Hinoka smiles as watches the red-eyed girl. Kiba finishes up and heads over to the three as Rinkah goes to tend to Kaze before sending him off to alert the village that they’re safe. Kiba smiles at the two before turning back to the others and becoming serious. Sakura fidgets nervously before moving forward and bowing towards Kiba.

“Thank you so much for coming to our aid. Those monsters would have caused a lot more damage if you hadn’t come. I have to ask, though… Who are you?” Sakura speaks curiously as Kiba smiles. Kiba bows her head towards Sakura and opens her mouth to respond before pausing as Hinoka steps towards her.

“Her name is Kiba,” Hinoka says as she steps up to stand in front of Kiba. Kiba gulps nervously as she gazes at Hinoka and flexes her hands worriedly.

“Er, yes. Nice to meet you properly,” Kiba responds looking nervous again. Sakura looks at Hinoka and tilts her head curiously.

“Hinoka? Are you okay?” Sakura asks softly. Hinoka doesn’t respond and steps forward to pull Kiba into a tight hug causing the burgundy haired woman to stiffen. Kiba looks down at Hinoka and feels her shake against her as the redhead starts to cry.

“Finally...after all these years...I...I’ve missed you so much. S-sorry…” Hinoka sobs out loudly. Kiba looks at her before it dawns on her what’s bothering Hinoka. Kiba brings her arms up and wraps them around Hinoka as she places one hand on Hinoka’s head and rubs gently to try and calm her. Ryoma stands in surprised silence not having expected the reaction and just watches dumbfounded. Kiba’s red eyes flash and glow, humming with a hidden power that goes unnoticed by the others, but Hinoka begins to calm shortly after the small surge of power occurs. Kiba slowly strokes Hinoka’s head and seems to purr as she nuzzles her trying to calm her the same way she used to be calmed down when she had nightmares.

“Hinoka was very attached to you when you were little, Kiba. When you were taken from us, she cried for months. One day she stopped crying and picked up the naginata. And I will say...if you ever find yourself facing the business end of her weapon… you will soon be filled with major regrets about your life decisions,” Ryoma pauses to take a breath and Kiba looks at him.

“She vowed to bring me back…. Didn’t she?” Kiba speaks lowly her voice rougher than normal. Ryoma nods and smiles as the rest goes unsaid though both know what he would have said about her being back. Kiba sighs and gently strokes Hinoka’s head to calm her down. Hinoka eventually pulls away only for Kiba to pull her back into another silent hug causing Hinoka to blush. Ryoma’s eyes widen in confusion as Kiba seems to have accepted Hinoka faster than she accepted Mikoto. Kiba is first to pull away this time and smiles gently at Hinoka before moving to Rinkah’s side.

“I’m sorry, Kiba. I’m not usually this emotional,” Hinoka is still blushing bright red and smiles softly at Kiba. “But I’m just so happy to have you back. Take that, Nohrian scumbags! We win, you lose!” Hinoka laughs as she speaks excitedly. Kiba flinches and looks away from the others before hurrying off as Rinkah hurries after her. Hinoka looks confused and so does Ryoma, but Sakura hurries to catch up with Kiba.

“Is this really Kiba, Rinkah?” Sakura says timidly. Kiba stops once she’s a few feet away from Hinoka and Ryoma making sure the two can’t see her. She slams her fist into a tree and leaves a hole in the trunk from her strength as well as breaking two of her fingers. Sakura flinches from the sight and looks worried, but Rinkah holds her back

“Yes, I know this is big news, so I’ll let your siblings fill you in later, Sakura. For now we should get back to the castle,” Rinkah says softly as Hinoka and Ryoma join the three. Kiba avoids looking at Ryoma and Hinoka, further confusing the redhead who looks at Kiba worriedly.

“Rinkah is right Sakura. For now we should return to the castle before Nohr deploys more monsters. Everyone, let’s head home!” Ryoma calls out. The others all nod except for Kiba who is staring at the border and clenches her fist and teeth longingly, but it looks like anger to everyone except Rinkah and Sakura. Kiba shakes herself and clears her throat before letting her eyes drift to Ryoma.

“What were those things?”

“They’re known as the Faceless. Creatures with no will of their own. Created by Nohrian mages,” Ryoma says dismissively as he starts to walk away. Kiba frowns at the statement and follows beside Hinoka and her Pegasus slowly.

“I call ‘em dead meat. But they’re the only thing Nohr can throw at us right now.  Our mother, Queen Mikoto, put up a magical barrier around our kingdom. Regular enemy soldiers find themselves without the will to fight upon crossing it.  So long as Mother is able to keep the barrier up, Nohr can’t invade Hoshido,” Hinoka interjects looking angry at the thought. Kiba frowns deeply at the thought of a barrier that takes away a person’s will to fight by imposing a different will onto them.

“That’s why Nohr sends those...things. They have no souls---no will of their own. That’s why they are able to penetrate the barrier and terrorize our borders,” Ryoma says. Kiba grimaces and looks down as Rinkah watches her worriedly.

“But... the Nohrians wouldn’t send monsters to terrorize innocent people…” Kiba says softly.

“Of course they would. They’re pure evil. Sometimes the Faceless even turn on the mages who created them. But the Nohrians don’t care. They’re willing to sacrifice their own just to hurt others. I’ll never forgive them for that, or for stealing you away. They’ll pay for all the suffering they’ve caused!” Hinoka speaks angrily at first before smiling as she looks determined. Kiba stops walking and Hinoka pauses to look back at her along with the others. Kiba lowers her head as she thinks of the kindness given to her by Nohrians even those outside the royal family.

“You’re wrong… You’re wrong about them… I’ll never believe something so wrong…” Kiba murmurs lowly as Hinoka looks at her confused. Kiba glares angrily as she growls and darts towards Hinoka with her hand reaching upwards. “You don’t know anything! Don’t you dare judge them!”

Hinoka cries out in fear as Kiba charges her and Ryoma hurries to stand between the two. Kiba hisses and slips by Ryoma and Hinoka before leaping onto Hinoka’s Pegasus. Hinoka cries out in fear for her sister as most Pegasi hate when someone other than their rider gets on their back. Kiba lightly taps the winged horse’s neck and he shoots into the sky  as Hinoka watches dumbfound. Kiba simply directs the horse to head home and the Pegasus flies towards Shirasagi castle. Rinkah watches in awe before the party takes off after her.

When the Pegasus lands Kiba stumbles off and pets the Pegasus on the nose before hurrying into the shadows. Kiba is breathing irregularly and she stumbles into someone offering a quick apology before continuing to flee. She eventually finds a dark corner and tucks herself away in it as she shakes feeling like she’s in a hopeless situation. She slowly sinks to her knees and continues to breath shakily as she presses her palms into her eyes to stop the tears that threaten to spill over. After about half an hour she hears guards announcing the return of Ryoma and the others. Kiba takes a shaky breath and slips out of her hiding spot following her nose to lead her back to the area where Mikoto is greeting the group. Hinoka and Ryoma look distressed as Mikoto looks for Kiba worriedly. Kiba watches from the shadows and slowly comes out of them as she says nothing, refusing to apologize for her actions as she feels justified in them.

“Oh there you are Kiba. I thought you’d be hiding somewhere still,” Rinkah speaks softly as she draws attention to the burgundy haired woman. Hinoka’s eyes travel to her and she looks angry, but it melts away when she sees the tired, drained expression on the young woman. “You must be tired, Lady Kiba. You should rest, Princess.” Rinkah speaks worriedly as Kiba simply nods in agreement. Mikoto smiles gently and moves to Kiba’s side.

“I’ll show you to your room, Kiba,” Mikoto says softly. Kiba nods silently and shoots Rinkah a grateful look as she follows Mikoto. Mikoto smiles and leads Kiba through the halls and towards the East Wing where the other sleeping quarters are for the royal family. Mikoto smiles and opens the door to a room that looks like it belongs to a young child. “Welcome back, Kiba! This is your old room.” Kiba slowly walks into the room and looks around before moving towards one of the drawings on the floor.

“And what’s this?” Kiba speaks curiously as she kneels down to pick up the drawing.

“Oh! That’s a picture you drew when you were a little girl. This is your father, this is me, and that’s you. It’s so cute!” Mikoto says overjoyed as she moves to stand beside Kiba. Kiba releases a heavy sigh and frowns as she looks at the picture. Mikoto smiles painfully as she stands at Kiba’s side. “We couldn’t bear to touch a thing in this room after you were taken. If we put your things away, it would have felt like giving up. You’ve grown so much. I can’t believe how beautiful you are!” Kiba looks up and realizes she’s standing in front of a mirror with Mikoto beside her. Kiba takes the opportunity to study Mikoto and looks for similarities. Her eyes roam over Mikoto’s face and she admits that the two do have the same face shape, but that’s where the similarities end. Where Mikoto has a mole, Kiba has wing shaped birthmarks just beneath her eyes, and unlike Mikoto her hair is a deep burgundy while Mikoto’s is a pitch back, Kiba’s eyes are much brighter and almost blood red instead of the beautiful hazel of Mikoto’s. Kiba sighs and turns to face Mikoto looking pained and troubled.

“I’m afraid I still don’t remember anything,” Kiba says softly. Mikoto simply smiles as she looks at Kiba.

“Oh?”

“I...I just don’t know how to respond to your stories. I do believe I could be your child… But everyone here simply feels like a stranger to me,” Kiba says sadly, knowing this is going to hurt Mikoto as much as it hurts her to stay here. Mikoto closes her eyes looking sad and Kiba instantly feels guilty for speaking up.

“I understand, Kiba. Please don’t worry about it.”

“I’m so sorry. Here you are, maybe my real mother, and I don’t feel anything… I cannot begin to imagine how painful this must be for you…” Kiba lowers her head and speaks softly.

“Please. It makes sense. You spent your whole childhood in Nohr. I’m sure you were quite sheltered. You will need time to think all of this through and search your soul. But I hope that someday we can be a family again,” Mikoto speaks hopefully as she stares at the silent Kiba. “For now, please make yourself comfortable. Explore the castle, or stroll the grounds outside. You’ll be safe here.” Kiba lowers her head more and slowly moves forward to hesitantly hug Mikoto. Mikoto stands stiffly in the hug and Kiba quickly pulls away before slipping past Mikoto.

“Thank you Queen Mikoto…. I do truly hope that soon we both have our answers,” Kiba speaks softly and heads out to go for a walk alone. Kiba walks aimlessly and finds her way to a field where she sits and stares at the horizon towards Nohr. She waits only a few minutes before her cloaked and hidden companion joins her. The woman kneels beside her and the two stare into the distance.

“You can’t stop thinking about Camilla… Or Xander, Leo, and Elise… You miss them dearly... “ the woman states. Kiba smiles and laughs gently as she tilts her head upwards to look at the sky.

“Yeah… But at the same time I can’t stop thinking about Mikoto and the false siblings I have here… I’m afraid, little sister…” Kiba murmurs lowly as she watches the clouds with a heavy gaze. She sighs softly after a few moments and lowers her head. “It’s so hard to deny it when she and you look so alike… Guess I’m just the odd one in the family.” The two fall silent afterwards and after a few seconds they can hear soft singing.

“You are the ocean’s gray waves… Destined to seek… Life beyond the shore…”

“Hm? What a beautiful song…” Kiba murmurs as she relaxes from the song alone. Kiba stands hearing the song and turns towards the area the sound is coming from. Her sister stays seated and watches her with a fond smile. Kiba walks towards the forest and follows the sound of the song.

“Yet the waters ever change. Flowing like time The path is yours to climb..” a blue haired songstress sings. The woman slowly walks along a dock in the middle of a lake Kiba found in a small clearing in the forest. Kiba stares and tries to silently slip out to the dock as she tilts her head and listens to the song. She silently curses herself when she causes the grass to rustle and catches the attention of the songstress. The songstress looks confused as to who Kiba is and slowly makes her way over to the burgundy haired woman. “Yes?”

“Er, hello. I’m sorry to bother you. I just got lost in your singing. There’s something about that song that captivated me…” Kiba says and sighs at having disturbed the singer.

“You must be Princess Kiba.”

“Yes. And you are?” Kiba looks confused as to how this woman knows her.

“I am Azura. A former princess of Nohr,” Azura says gently. Kiba frowns at the statement unable to believe that she hasn’t heard about this princess before.

“Former? I don’t understand. If that were true, surely I would have heard of you. I grew up with the Nohrian family…” Kiba says confused. Kiba tilts her head gently as Azura takes a slight step back which only further confuses Kiba.

“I’m afraid I’ve been here a long time. After you were taken by the Nohrians, the Hoshidan forces retaliated. They tried desperately to get you back, but they failed again and again. However, I wasn’t as heavily guarded. Hoshidan ninja easily kidnapped me. I suppose we’ve both been hostages for most of our lives…” Azura murmurs lowly. Kiba looks saddened by the news and places her right hand over her heart before bowing towards Azura.

“I’m so sorry…” Kiba murmurs lowly.

“No, it’s okay. I may technically be a hostage, but I’ve lived a happy life. The people of Hoshido have accepted me as one of their own. Even Queen Mikoto herself treats me as if I were her daughter,” Azura says gently and smiles happily. Kiba straightens and tilts her head curious about the statement.

“Does she? Hmm…” Kiba grabs her chin between her thumb and forefinger. Kiba looks thoughtful and Azura frowns a bit looking a bit worried.

“Did something happen between you and Queen Mikoto?” Azura asks gently. Kiba sighs and shakes her head before grimacing a bit as her teeth flash in the light.

“No. I just...I just don’t know what to do. She seems perfectly lovely, but I don’t feel any connection to her. But she loves me. And so do all my other siblings---who I’ve just met,” Kiba says sadly. Azura nods in understanding as she listens before growing thoughtful.

“I understand. If I were to return to Nohr. I suspect I’d feel the same way,” Azura responds. Kiba pauses as she looks Azura over and tilts her head gently.

“Do you think you could start over there? Live a new life among strangers?” Kiba says as her hand drops to her side and she clenches it into a fist. Azura frowns and starts to respond before stopping to give the question a bit more thought.

“No. Given a choice, I would prefer to stay here in Hoshido. Queen Mikoto is a peace-loving ruler. King Garon is not,” Azura states determinedly. Kiba stays silent as she stares at  Azura sensing she isn’t finished speaking. “So, Kiba...what are you going to do?” Kiba frowns and shakes her head before sighing softly as she lets her gaze drift to the lake.

“I don’t know. For now, I’m just going to spend some time thinking,” Kiba says softly. Azura smiles in understanding and nods.

“Alright. We should head back to the castle though. Dinner will be served soon and I’m sure we’ll be missed if we don’t attend,” Azura says kindly. Kiba smiles a bit and nods as she turns to follow Azura back when the other Princess walks passed her. Kiba tilts her head and watches Azura for a few moments as they walk before her gaze drifts to the sky.

_ ‘Could I really stay here and be happy the way she is… How different would things be if I had grown up here?’ _ Kiba thinks. The burgundy haired Princess subconsciously moves closer to Azura as her eyes drift idly over the Hoshidan landscape. She frowns and shakes her head before sighing softly as her eyes blaze for a moment. Kiba clenches a fist at her side and grows serious as her thoughts settle on the last nightmare she had involving Ryoma and Xander.  _ ‘No. Even if I was raised here, my goal would be the same. I will make sure that my dreams never come to pass. No matter what price I have to pay for that wish.’ _ Kiba thinks firmly.

Azura jumps a bit hearing Kiba’s clawed gauntlets drum along her armor in a rapid rhythm that conveys impatience and unease. Azura goes to reach her hand out to Kiba, but stops when the drumming stops and Kiba looks at ease. Azura watches as the girl’s eyes shine with determination and looks at her confused.

“Is everything alright, Kiba? You seem tenser than earlier,” Azura murmurs quietly. Kiba smiles widely as she turns towards Azura.

“Everything is fine Azura. I was just thinking about a dream I had…” Kiba says softly. Kiba’s red eyes blaze with a controlled fire within them and Azura can’t help but be drawn to them. She looks away quickly afraid of being burned by the fire inside this one woman’s eyes. Kiba doesn’t look surprised as she’s used to people looking away from her odd eyes. “Thank you for speaking with me, Azura. Have a wonderful evening and I’ll see you at dinner I hope.” Kiba bows towards Azura when they step into castle Shirasagi. Azura nods wordlessly and parts ways with the other woman as she heads back to her room.

Kiba sighs softly and walks around the castle grounds for a few more minutes to clear her head. She finds Rinkah and Kaze having a small practice spar and watches the two fondly. Her mind wanders and she doesn’t pay much attention to the fight as her eyes idly follow Rinkah as she strikes at Kaze, who dodges the blow. Kiba eventually turns away when Rinkah pins Kaze beneath her and leaves the area to head back to her room. She steps inside and finds a cloth dress on her bed.

Kiba sighs softly and starts to undress as she closes the door and turns her back to it. It isn’t long before the door slides open silently and closes again as Kiba’s birth sister slips into the room. Kiba lets her eyes roam over her sister for a moment then smiles a bit as she continues to change. Her sister says nothing as she stares at the ground and watches Kiba’s feet. Kiba removes the last of her armor and sets it aside before checking the wraps she wears around her chest. Her sister stands and helps her adjust them without a word. Kiba turns and gives her a small smile before sighing as she searches for a pair of shorts to wear underneath her clothes. Kiba smiles and pulls on a pair of red shorts given to her by her sister, who has been carrying the items around since she left Nohr on her mission for Kiba originally.

“Thanks,” Kiba murmurs softly to the other woman. She smiles gently and giggles as she watches Kiba pull the cloth dress on. Kiba sighs and runs her hand over the black cloth decorated with red dragons that curl around the material and end up with their heads on Kiba’s shoulders. She looks in the mirror and notes how the material clings to her curvy form perfectly. She runs her eyes over herself and sighs when she sees a dragon’s claw is curled over where her heart is. She shifts from foot to foot before moving back to her armor as she slips out of her shorts and pulls the armored pants back on feeling more comfortable with the material over her legs instead of the cloth.

A knock comes from the door and Kiba turns her gaze to her sister who quickly slips into the closet to avoid being seen. Kiba moves towards the door and takes a shaky breath. She steels her nerves as she’s never worn a dress of any kind before in her life and feels out of place in it, but in a somewhat nice way. She reaches for the door and slowly slides it open to greet her visitor. Azura smiles gently at Kiba when the door opens and stands in her own blue and white cloth dress of her own.

“Hello Kiba. I wasn’t sure if you knew where the dining room was, so I thought I’d guide you there,” Azura says softly. Kiba smiles gratefully and nods as she exits her room, closing the door behind her.

“Thank you, Azura. I doubt I would have found the dining area anytime soon even if I have an excellent sense of smell,” Kiba says softly. Kiba keeps a small, kind smile as she falls into step beside Azura. Azura smiles back a bit and nods in understanding as she leads the way towards the dining hall. Kiba looks at Azura’s dress and notes the blue dragon that decorates the dress matches the red one on her own dress. “What exactly are these dresses, Azura? Is there some kind of significance of their designs?” Kiba asks curiously.

“They’re called yukata. It’s a casual dress worn here made out of cotton. They’re very commonplace as they’re fairly cheap and easy to obtain, even for the general public,” Azura responds softly and giggles behind her hand. Kiba tilts her head as she runs her hand over the yukata to straighten out a wrinkle.

“Thank you for explaining, but I still don’t exactly understand why you wear these. Isn’t it dangerous to be so exposed to attack like this?” Kiba asks softly, not used to a place as peaceful as this. Azura looks at her curiously and lightly touches Kiba’s arm.

“It’s perfectly safe. No one has tried to break into the castle for sometime and even then the guards are always prepared to protect the royal family,” Azura reassures her. Kiba looks at Azura doubtfully, but nods in acceptance to the explanation. Azura smiles kindly and pulls her arm away as she pauses outside the doors to the dining hall. “I’ll see you inside, Kiba.”

Kiba watches Azura head inside and stands outside the doors. Kiba takes a moment to gather her thoughts and glances over her shoulder to the shadows to the right of her. Her red eyes instantly find the figure of her friend and sister, causing her to feel more at ease. Kiba smiles a bit and turns back to the door as she takes a deep breath before heading inside.

Kiba pushes open the doors and gulps nervously before slowly making her way towards the table where the rest of her siblings are gathered with Mikoto and Azura. Hinoka and Ryoma smile at Kiba as Sakura waves her over to sit beside her across from a young boy who looks about the same age as Leo, maybe a year or two younger. Kiba smiles gently and moves to sit beside Sakura as she smiles and mimics Sakura’s seated position by tucking her legs beneath her and sitting on them comfortably.

“Hello, Kiba. I’m glad you decided to join us for dinner tonight,” Hinoka smiles as she greets Kiba. Kiba smiles back and dips her head slightly towards the redhead.

“I wouldn’t have missed it. After all that has happened today I felt it was only right for me to attend and try to get to know everyone a little better,” Kiba says lowly and keeps her head bowed before straightening. Mikoto smiles and chuckles lightly looking happy to see Kiba sitting with her family again. Kiba stays silent as Mikoto speaks with Ryoma, and Kiba listens to Sakura who begins telling Kiba about her day.

Kiba smiles and listens intently as she nods along to what Sakura says and answers a few questions about herself. Kiba smiles and can’t help, but note that eating with this family reminds her of all the meals she spent with nobles of Nohr. Kiba blinks and sees Camilla and Xander deep in discussion instead of Hinoka and Ryoma making the girl pause with her chopsticks in her mouth as she stares. Kiba slowly withdraws the utensils from her mouth and sets them down before placing her hands in her lap. Sakura notices the difference and lightly touches Kiba’s arm making Kiba flinch slightly.

“Are you okay, Kiba?” Sakura murmurs softly. Kiba stares at Sakura’s worried expression and relaxes as she reaches up to gently brush her hand against Sakura’s.

“Yes… I just remembered something is all. Eating like this reminded me of meals I shared with the Nohr royals… Before…” Kiba trails off and shakes her head slowly. She looks away from Sakura and smiles sadly to herself. Sakura waits for Kiba to go on, but the burgundy haired woman doesn’t. Sakura quickly lunges forward and hugs Kiba tightly drawing the attention of the others to the two.

“I’m sorry, Kiba…” Sakura murmurs softly. Kiba laughs and shakes her head amused as she rubs Sakura’s head fondly.

“You shouldn’t apologize for something you had no hand in. It’s not fair to you to take a burden like that on,” Kiba smiles fondly as she rubs Sakura’s head. Hinoka and Ryoma smile softly as they watch and Mikoto watches Kiba’s expression as her red eyes seem to flash. Sakura smiles and the group returns to their meal, but Kiba’s mind begins wandering again. Kiba’s eyes drift over those at the table from the boy across from her to Sakura, to Hinoka, to Ryoma, to Azura, and then finally settling on Mikoto. Kiba frowns as her mind drifts to the wall this woman has created that keeps normal warriors from invading Hoshido. Kiba sets her chopsticks down again and stares more intensely until Mikoto looks at her and sets her chopsticks aside, smiling softly.

“Is there something you need, Kiba? You’ve been staring for quite some time now,” Mikoto says gently. Kiba tilts her head and continues to stare at Mikoto as her eyes pierce Mikoto’s, scrutinizing her.

“I want to know how that wall you put up works. I was told that it keeps normal warriors from being able to fight by taking away their will,” Kiba says lowly. The others stop talking and Kiba can feel an angry glare being directed at her from the boy across from her, but she ignores it. Mikoto looks curious as she thinks about Kiba’s statement.

“Yes, the barrier makes those that would wish harm against Hoshido lose the will to fight. It surrounds all of Hoshido, but it will only function as long as I can keep it up,” Mikoto responds. Kiba tilts her head downwards and narrows her eyes thoughtfully.

“So you brainwash them,” Kiba states it as a fact as she looks up to meet Mikoto’s eyes. Mikoto tilts her head looking thoughtful and before she can respond the boy across from Kiba slams his hand onto the table and draws the attention of everyone except Kiba and Mikoto.

“How dare you come into this place and question Mother! You don’t understand anything and have no right to question this! You’re just Nohrian scum!” the boy says angrily.

“Takumi! How dare you say that about Kiba! It’s not her fault she was taken!” Hinoka defends angrily. The two begin to glare at one another as Kiba waits for a response from Mikoto.

“I never thought of it like that, Kiba. I have always thought of the barrier as a tool to protect my people and not how others may see it,” Mikoto says thoughtfully. Kiba continues to stare and then finally looks away as she bows towards Mikoto.

“Then you are no better than King Garon who rules with fear. You rule by not giving the people a choice. If they were unhappy about your rule they would be unable to do anything because your barrier should stop them before they can do anything, so long as they have wills of their own. You give your people no choice by taking away the choice before they even have one,” Kiba states lowly. Mikoto winces at the bluntness of the statement and lowers her head. “Do not misunderstand, Mikoto. I can understand why you would do such a thing, but…that does not mean I believe it is right. I think there could have been a better solution than this,” Kiba murmurs gently seeing Mikoto looking so sad. Mikoto looks up at Kiba surprised to hear that she can understand why she did what she did.

“Thank you, Kiba… for not judging me too harshly for the decision I made,” Mikoto speaks lowly as she lowers her head a bit. Kiba’s eyes stay on Mikoto and she bows towards her deeply.

“I cannot judge you for doing what you did when you had already lost people very close to you… I do not know if I would have done the same thing, but…I do know that I would do anything in my power to protect those that are important to me,” Kiba responds. Mikoto smiles gently and nods in understanding as she wanted to do the same thing for her own family.

“You’re just going to accept that mother?! She blatantly accused you of being like that Nohr scum Garon!” Takumi shouts as he stands and glares daggers at Kiba. Kiba stays seated and doesn’t respond as she calmly picks her chopsticks up and resumes eating. Mikoto frowns at Takumi and shakes her head preparing to respond, but is cut off by Takumi. “I don’t understand how you can just accept scum like her into our house. She’s probably only here to sow dissention among the troops and learn of our battle tactics, so she can report them back to those filthy Nohrians!”

“Takumi! How can you say that? Kiba is our sister!” Hinoka chastises the white haired boy and frowns deeply. Kiba closes her eyes and continues to eat quietly as she listens and Mikoto watches her daughter and Takumi confused by how calm Kiba is.

“You’re defending her?! After she insulted our mother?!” Takumi shouts angrily. Kiba sets her bowl and chopsticks down in the silence that follows the angry questions and all eyes land on her. Kiba bows her head and whispers a soft thanks for the meal before resuming her silent state as she doesn’t feel the need to defend herself. Azura notices and looks at Takumi before preparing to speak.

“Takumi… You shouldn’t judge Kiba so harshly… You don’t understand what she’s going through,” Azura murmurs softly. Takumi turns angry eyes towards Azura and she flinches visibly before quickly looking away.

“Don’t you dare say my name! You’re no better than the Nohrian scum sitting across from me! You--” Takumi begins, verbally ripping into Azura. Kiba stands as Takumi begins his angry rant and quickly side steps around the table, blocking Azura from Takumi’s view as she does so. Takumi barely has enough time to process that Kiba is standing in front of him before making a strange sound as he slumps forward against Kiba. Kiba’s expression becomes bored and passive as she looks down at the immobilized boy before she kneels and lays him flat on the floor. She glances at the others from the corner of her eye and notes their expressions that range from worry and confusion to stunned. Kiba snorts dismissively through her nose and reaches down to grasp Takumi’s shoulder digging her fingers into it.

“You’re not gonna be doing anything for several hours after this, so I believe now is the perfect time to drill something into your thick, idiotic skull little boy. You can insult me and my ways all you want, but don’t you dare insult anyone else, least of all Azura, the way you just did in my presence ever again. Azura was raised here among you and your siblings as your sister. I was not and only I deserve your scorn and hatred. If you want someone to hate, then hate me all you want. It is justified if you hate me after all since I’m an outsider here, but if you ever turn that hatred onto those around you then I won’t be so merciful as to only temporarily paralyze you. Next time I won’t hold back,” Kiba hisses lowly and tightens her grip on Takumi’s shoulder, her pupils narrowing dangerously. Mikoto starts to rise to stop Kiba, but Kiba blinks and her eyes return to normal. Kiba stares down at Takumi completely composed and squeezes his shoulder firmly again before releasing him and rising to her feet as she leaves behind angry red marks from the squeeze. Hinoka, Sakura, and Ryoma hurry to their brother’s side to check on him as Azura and Mikoto watch frozen in their seats. Kiba watches passively before looking away to hide the anger that burns in her eyes and courses through her blood. 

“I’m afraid he’ll be in need of a bit of assistance getting back to his room. I only paralyzed him temporarily and there won’t be any lasting after effects.” Kiba bows her head towards Mikoto and Azura respectfully before turning towards the door to leave. She pauses before leaving and turns to give Mikoto a small, saddening smile. “Thank you for the meal...and for indulging my curiosity Queen Mikoto.”

Kiba calmly steps out of the room and makes her way down the hallway as she begins to think. She doesn’t really focus on where her feet are taking her and simply walks through the halls. A few minutes later she finds herself in the training arena she saw Rinkah and Kaze in earlier that day. Kiba sighs as her hands flex at her side as she itches to train in an attempt to blow off the rest of her anger. Kiba quickly strips out of the yukata she’s wearing and steps into the practice area as she looks around.

“Kaze? Rinkah? Are either of you here?” Kiba calls out softly. She doesn’t expect an immediate response, but she receives one when Rinkah steps out of the hall leading to her sleeping quarters with her weapon and training gear on. A moment later Kaze appears from the shadows and Kiba sighs in relief.

“Did you need something Princess?” Kaze asks quietly. Kiba looks at him as Rinkah steps into the ring and moves to stand beside Kaze.

“I may have done something at dinner that I will regret later… I was hoping one, or both, of you would be willing to spar with me to help alleviate the rest of my frustration,” Kiba murmurs softly. Rinkah tilts her head and frowns a bit as Kaze looks thoughtful.

“I don’t mind sparing with you, Kiba,” Rinkah agrees. Kaze nods in agreement and Kiba sighs in relief as she smiles a bit.

“Thank you...Feel free to come at me with all your strength,” Kiba murmurs softly. Rinkah and Kaze frown seeing that Kiba is weaponless and only slightly protected as she only has her leg armor on and wraps around her chest, but no armor.

“Are you sure? You’re practically defenseless right now,” Kaze says. Kiba nods firmly and drops into a ready stance as she watches Kaze and Rinkah carefully. Rinkah and Kaze nod in understanding and take a step back to prepare themselves. They both analyze Kiba’s stance for weaknesses that can be exploited as the three slowly begin to move around in a circle.

Rinkah darts in first as she swings her club at Kiba’s right side, but redirects the blow towards Kiba’s legs when she gets closer. Kiba grunts and leaps upwards over Rinkah as Kaze flashes out of sight to reappear above Kiba and launches a shuriken at her back. Kiba spins in the air and the sound of metal striking metal is heard as the shuriken bounces off her leg armor. Kaze lands looking surprised as Kiba lands in a light crouch and gazes at the two with a small smirk.

“Is that the best the two of you can do? Come on I’m defenceless here,” Kiba goads. Rinkah growls and darts forward with a yell as she aims at Kiba’s feet and when the club strikes the ground, flames erupt from the weapon out towards Kiba. Kiba leaps backwards and slides along the ground as Kaze flashes to stand in front of her and throws a Shuriken at her again. Kiba ducks to avoid the blow and Rinkah darts in to try and take advantage of the situation as she strikes at Kiba’s exposed back. Kiba lets her body fall completely to the ground and rolls away from the blow before using her hands to launch herself into the air.

Kiba holds her hand up having snagged the shuriken Kaze threw earlier and didn’t retrieve in his haste to strike Kiba again. Kaze and Rinkah watch her nervously, but Kiba looks beyond them as she throws the shuriken right between the two. The weapon can be heard striking something and the sound of a body slumping to the ground follows shortly afterwards. They ignore the sound and dart towards Kiba thinking she simply missed her target as she isn’t used to using the Hoshidan weapons. Rinkah strikes at Kiba’s side and Kiba leaps upwards to land on Rinkah’s club before springing over her head to land on Kaze and takes him to the ground.

Kiba quickly rolls away from Rinkah and grunts as she dodges her head towards the left like she’s avoiding a strike, but neither Rinkah or Kaze have attacked her. Kiba snarls as her cheek is sliced open when a dagger seems to appear out of thin air and she’s a second too slow to avoid being struck. Kaze and Rinkah turn to look in front of Kiba just in time to see familiar purple flames eating away at a body. Kiba hisses and darts forward as Rinkah and Kaze watch the girl fight invisible enemies that flicker in and out of view. It doesn’t take the two long to fall in beside Kiba as they help her fight off the assailants. Kiba grunts as she’s a second too slow to avoid the strike of a spear, leaving a shallow gash on her side.

Rinkah glares at the spot she thinks the warrior is and strikes it. She’s met by the satisfying feeling of resistance before it crumbles beneath her club. She grunts in satisfaction as purple and red flames consume the invisible warrior. Kiba shoots Rinkah a grateful look and grasps the spear before it can fall to the ground. She twirls the spear around and clumsily stabs at the last few warriors as they retreat. Kiba is panting as the last few enemies retreat and she drops the spear to the ground. Kiba stumbles backwards and grabs her yukata to pull it on quickly to hide her wound from sight. Rinkah and Kaze hurry to her side not noticing Kiba’s sister as she slips over the wall after the fleeing assailants.

“Are you alright, Kiba?” Rinkah asks worriedly. Kiba nods gently as she pants softly to catch her breath. Rinkah gently places her hand on Kiba’s shoulder and the burgundy haired woman leans into her hand a bit looking tired.

“Yes… I’ll be fine Rinkah… I’m just tired now,” Kiba says softly. Rinkah and Kaze nod in understanding as Kiba pulls away and straightens herself carefully before wiping away the blood on her cheek. “Please try to keep this to yourselves. There’s no reason to put the others on edge because of me.”

“But Kiba if someone is after you we should alert the others. They will want to protect you,” Kaze says firmly. Kiba shakes her head as she gazes at Kaze seriously.

“No. There’s no reason to worry them if I’m the only one being targeted. I’m still a stranger here and it’s only natural that someone would target an outsider in fear of them betraying this place. Unless someone else brings this up say nothing about what happened tonight. Now, I need to go get my wounds tended to before I ruin this yukata or am noticed by the others. They don’t need to be worried about me over something like this,” Kiba orders before turning away. “I know that I cannot control what you do, Kaze, but please do not speak of this without my permission.”

“Don’t worry Princess. I’ll make sure he doesn’t say anything to anyone. Now go take care of yourself. Kaze and I will make sure there aren’t anymore of those warriors around,” Rinkah says firmly. Kiba nods and hurries away only doing so because she knows the two won’t find anything. Kiba huffs in relief as she lets the tension in her body drain away knowing the two will be fine.

Kiba stumbles into her room and closes the door quickly. She breathes shakily and clutches her side to stem the blood flow while removing the yukata. She gasps in pain and looks at the article glad there isn’t much blood on it. She drops the clothing onto the ground and hurries forward to grab her sister’s bag and opens it hurriedly. Kiba’s hands shake gently as she pulls out a roll of bandages and hurriedly wraps her side to stop the blood flow. Kiba gasps softly as she leans against the wall carefully and looks at the bandages on her side.

Kiba sighs in relief as the bandage is only slightly moist with her blood confirming her suspicion that the wound was shallower than it appeared. Kiba cuts off another piece of bandage and uses the mirror in her room to carefully center the bandage over the small cut on her cheek. She winces as she attempts to clean the area around the wound beforehand and then tapes down the bandage. Kiba releases a soft puff of air and hides her sister’s bag beneath her armor and cloak carefully. Kiba looks at herself in the mirror and notes how much of a mess she looks before she sighs heavily. She looks herself over again before her eyes drift to her lavender choker resting beside her gauntlets. She stares at the choker for a moment before grasping it firmly in her hand. She rubs her thumb over the silk slowly before putting it on. She runs her thumb over the material again thinking of Nohr before she crawls onto the sleeping mat laid out in her room already. She slowly closes her eyes and imagines amber orbs looking down at her.

Kiba fights off sleep for a moment and remembers the nightmare she had about an amber eyed woman. It clicks in her brain that the person was Azura as she thinks of amber eyes for a few more seconds. Kiba’s blood runs cold as she closes her eyes tiredly, unable to fight off exhaustion anymore.  _ ‘I won’t let her die…..not this time..’ _ Kiba thinks right before sleep consumes her mind. Kiba breathes gently as she sleeps and lays perfectly still on her back having fallen asleep with her armored leggings still on.

An hour passes and when Kiba’s sister returns she finds Kiba covered in a thin coat of sweat and breathing heavily. The woman hurries towards Kiba and kneels beside her. She places her hand on Kiba’s head and checks her temperature before quickly pulling away her hand at the heat she feels. The woman worries her bottom lip and frowns as her thoughts race trying to form a plan. She closes her eyes and comes to a decision as she exits the room and hurries down the hall. She stops when she’s standing in front of the door to Sakura’s room and takes a deep breath.

The woman slides the door open, startling Sakura who cries out in fear at the sight of the unfamiliar figure. The woman doesn’t do anything and waits to hear the other doors being slammed open quickly as shouts come from nearby. The woman quickly backs away from Sakura’s door with a scowl like a foiled attacker. Hinoka releases a battle cry as she charges down the hallway towards the woman. Before Hinoka can arrive there a young brown haired samurai rushes at the woman. The woman dodges backwards to avoid the blow and pushes herself into the air to leap over Hinoka receiving a small scrape from the naginata the redhead wields. Hinoka snarls angrily as she stabs at the woman only to meet black armor in the exact same style as Kiba’s. Hinoka snarls again as she pushes against the woman only for the resistance to suddenly disappear as the woman disengages from her.

The cloak Kiba’s companion wears flutters open and reveals she’s unarmed, but that doesn’t stop the royals from continuing to chase after her. She leaps over Ryoma and lands for a split second with her hand on Raijinto as the blade sends a powerful shock of electricity through her body. The woman winces at the feeling, but grits her teeth and glares as she pushes off the blade like it’s a springboard to leap over Ryoma. She lands behind the larger man and immediately brings her arms up as Ryoma’s retainers, Saizo and Kagero, seem to materialize from thin air to strike at the woman. She catches the blows on her arm guards and angles her arms, so the shuriken slide off them before leaping away. Takumi snarls as he tries to line up a shot with his Fujin Yumi and his retainers dart forward to try and slow the woman down, but she ignores them and darts off down the hallway.

“She’s heading for Kiba’s room!” Hinoka shouts worriedly. Hinoka scowls as Azura darts down the hallway after the woman being nimbler than the others. Azura raises her white naginata to strike the woman, but stops when for a split second she catches sight of red eyes and her blood runs cold.

“Kiba?” Azura murmurs lowly as she freezes up. The woman doesn’t respond and scowls at having been seen. Azura grows angry as she chases after the woman with renewed vigor. “Why are you doing this Kiba?! Are you really only here to hurt us?!” Azura calls out in confusion. Azura soon loses sight of the woman as she darts around a corner. The woman doesn’t respond and darts past Rinkah who looks taken aback and quickly falls into step beside the woman.

“What are you doing?! I thought she had ordered you to stay out of sight?” Rinkah says lowly. The woman growls and darts into Kiba’s open door before quickly placing Kiba between herself and the angry royals and their retainers. Azura freezes seeing Kiba’s sweat drenched, panting form and looks at the other woman confused. Hinoka charges into the room shortly afterwards and releases an angry cry seeing Kiba lying prone as she attacks again. The woman makes no move to fight back at first and simply dodges the attacks before ducking downwards. She pushes herself forward and tackles Hinoka to the ground before disarming her by kicking away the naginata.

Before the woman can do anything else the sound of a bow being fired is heard and she cries out in pain as an arrow protrudes from her right shoulder. She twists towards the door and scowls seeing a blue haired woman with short hair that covers one eye standing in front of the other royals. She reaches up and grasps the bolt ripping it out of her shoulder with a soft hiss. The woman grits her teeth and checks the tip for poisons before rolling away from Hinoka as the archer fires again. Her eyes land on the panting form of Kiba before they land on Sakura who trembles feeling the eyes on her, but is unable to see them because of the woman’s hood.

“Help her,” the woman states the two words with worry and fear lacing her voice. She turns after speaking and charges towards the single window in the room and throws herself through it. Rinkah cries out in worry and hurries to the window sill blocking the view of the others. She glances at Kiba before climbing onto the window sill.

“I’ll go after her. She’s injured and unarmed. I’m sure I can capture her quickly,” Rinkah says seriously. Hinoka grunts and frowns as she sits up and hurries to Kiba’s side along with Azura and Sakura.

“You need to stay here Rinkah. You’ve been with Kiba longer than any of us and probably know what caused these wounds. Kaze and Kagero can go after her and we’ll alert the guards to keep an eye out for her,” Hinoka says firmly as Kaze appears in the room.

“Fine,” Rinkah says briskly. Kaze glances at Rinkah and frowns before taking off after the woman with Kagero. “Sakura, can you help Kiba?”

“Yes, but the wound on her cheek and side have both been poisoned. Hinoka please roll Kiba to her side and remove the bandages. Azura remove the bandage on her cheek,” Sakura orders. Hinoka nods and slowly rolls Kiba onto her uninjured side as Azura works to remove the bandage on Kiba’s cheek. Hinoka sucks in a sharp breath as Azura gasps seeing scars and bruises along Kiba’s back some of them still looking fresh. Rinkah closes her eyes before opening her eyes to stare at Kiba’s back as she takes in the sight. Sakura frowns as she shifts around to look at Kiba’s back and shakes her head.

“Can you heal these as well?” Hinoka murmurs lowly looking worried. Sakura studies the marks before shaking her head sadly.

“No. This is too much for me to heal at once. I’ll do my best to help her, but she will have to heal her bruises on her own for now at least,” Sakura murmurs lowly. The brown haired samurai woman hurries into the room and hands Sakura a healing staff. “Thank you Hana.” Sakura smiles at the woman and takes the staff from her carefully. Sakura frowns as she returns her gaze to Kiba’s back and examines the armor covering Kiba’s spine. Sakura reaches out and gently touches the armor as she examines it curiously. Kiba jerks away from the touch and whimpers in pain as she curls in on herself slightly. “We need to get this off her. It’ll be difficult to heal her if this is in the way.” Hinoka nods and reaches towards the top piece, but is stopped as Rinkah grabs her hand and pulls it away from the armor before she can touch it.

“You’ll hurt her if you try to remove it that way,” Rinkah states. Hinoka scowls and jerks her hand out of Rinkah’s hold.

“And how would you know that?” Hinoka growls irritably.

“Because I do. Just let me get it off her,” Rinkah states. Hinoka scowls and looks like she’s going to argue, but stops when a low groan comes from Kiba. All eyes turn towards the injured girl as her eyes flutter open for a moment and glide over those in the room. She frowns seeing the others before growling in pain as she curls in on herself again.

“Get….get out….” Kiba growls lowly, eyes narrowed threateningly, but this only causes the others to worry more. Azura moves a bit close to Kiba and carefully places her fingers against her neck. Kiba jerks away from the touch and turns her gaze towards Azura as her form relaxes slightly when she recognizes Azura.

“Kiba….I’m sure you’re disoriented and confused, but you’ve been poisoned. We’re only trying to help you,” Azura murmurs softly. Kiba’s eyes widen for a moment and she blinks in confusion as she lifts her head slightly before groaning and collapsing back onto the ground.

“I was...careless….forgot about….threat….of poison….” Kiba murmurs lowly as she curls in on herself, shivering from the effects of the poison. Hinoka and Azura frown at the statement and look at the burgundy haired woman confused by what she means. Rinkah grunts lowly as she bends over Kiba and looks down at her as red eyes focus on her when she moves into Kiba’s peripheral.

“We need to remove your armor Kiba. Do I have your permission?” Rinkah murmurs lowly. Kiba blinks slowly before grunting an affirmative. “And the antidote where is it?” Kiba blinks slowly again before her eyes narrow and a low growl comes from the back of her throat.

“Her bag….should be in there…” Kiba murmurs. Rinkah nods and moves away from Kiba as Kiba goes still again and takes slow, heavy breathes. Hinoka turns and watches Rinkah as she worries her bottom lip nervously. Rinkah steps towards the carefully made pile of Kiba’s armor and shifts the items aside before grabbing the bag out from beneath the chest piece. Rinkah opens the bag and grabs a small vial with black liquid in it out of the bag. Rinkah examines it carefully as she steps back towards Kiba and kneels beside her while Sakura, Hinoka, and Azura watch her intently.

“Alright I have the antidote. You’re gonna have to sit up to drink it though,” Rinkah states. Kiba nods weakly and lets Rinkah lift her into a sitting position before the vial is placed to her lips. Kiba opens her mouth and Rinkah tilts the vial towards Kiba as the liquid moves like sludge and slips into Kiba’s mouth. Kiba gags at the taste and goes pale looking as though she’s going to spit the liquid out. Rinkah quickly clamps her hand over Kiba’s mouth and holds her jaw shut to keep her from spitting out the liquid. Kiba squirms for a moment before swallowing thickly and gagging as the liquid slides down her throat.

Kiba groans lowly and rolls out of Rinkah’s hold as she lays on her stomach and trembles. Kiba arches her back and her armor molds to her spine making her hiss softly in discomfort. Hinoka frowns and reaches out before hesitating as her gaze moves to the metal folded perfectly against Kiba’s back like a second skin. Rinkah waits for Kiba to lay herself out flat again and quickly moves forward as she runs her fingers along the edge of the metal plates. She gently begins to fold them back into one another before peeling the spine part off Kiba’s back and then releasing the buckles along Kiba’s legs. She quickly sets the armor off to the side and looks back down at Kiba’s form.

Sakura moves forward once the armor is gone and kneels by Kiba’s side as she starts to heal Kiba. Kiba stays silent as she blinks sluggishly and her gaze roams over the others slowly. Kiba blinks once more and this time her eyes stay shut as she enters a deep dreamless sleep. Hinoka moves closer to Kiba and grows worried as she watches over the sleeping woman. Rinkah grunts and moves away to stand by the far wall as she waits for any news about Kiba’s sister and about Kiba’s own condition.

Mikoto comes into the room halfway through the healing process and watches sadly. Her eyes drift over Kiba’s back and land on each scar. Hinoka and Azura pull away from Kiba and move off to the side to watch Sakura work. The entire time Sakura works Hinoka is cursing the Nohrian family and swearing vengeance on them as Mikoto listens with a heavy heart. The retainers are eventually dismissed and Takumi leaves with them as he sees no reason to worry about a potential traitor. Mikoto doesn’t stop him, but she does stop Ryoma from reprimanding the younger boy.

“Rinkah… you’ve been traveling with Kiba longer than the rest of us. Can you tell us about those wounds?” Hinoka demands. The white haired Flame Tribe warrior looks at Hinoka before her eyes drift back to the sleeping Kiba. Rinkah sighs heavily and folds her arms across her chest looking unimpressed as she gazes at Hinoka.

“No, I cannot. I will admit that I knew about the bruises and the wound on her cheek, but she asked me not to tell how she got them. The same goes for Kaze. I  _ can _ tell you that the Nohrian royals were also unaware of these wounds. From what I saw of them if they had known they probably would have scoured the land until they found the culprit and put them through the same pain she’s suffering through right now. We may be at war with Nohr and they may have kidnapped Kiba, but the other royal children genuinely care for her,” Rinkah states calmly. Hinoka’s eyes blaze angrily and she starts towards Rinkah only to be stopped by Mikoto.

“Do not do something you’ll regret, Hinoka. Kiba doesn’t trust us fully, but I think she just doesn’t want others to worry about her either. She obviously cares very deeply for her family in Nohr, but if she wouldn’t even tell them about these wounds and bruises it is safe to assume she didn’t want to worry us,” Mikoto speaks gently as she looks at Hinoka. Her gaze drifts from Hinoka to Rinkah as Hinoka nods and moves to sit beside Kiba’s head as she gently strokes Kiba’s hair. “You did the right thing by following her orders Rinkah. I assume you swore an oath to my daughter if you did so.”

“Something like that, Mikoto,” Rinkah says, but her tone implies it’s something more than a simple oath of fealty. Mikoto nods silently and moves to sit beside Hinoka as she gently cups Kiba’s cheek and strokes it. Kiba sighs a bit and nuzzles the hand on her cheek before settling back into a drug induced dream. Azura smiles and moves to leave, but pauses when Kiba makes a noise of distress and instead decides to sit beside Hinoka. Mikoto sighs and shakes her head as she leaves to attend her duties for the day.

_ ‘What will happen to them?... Will those two really be strong enough for what may come in the future?...’  _ Mikoto thinks idly as she walks down the hall. She sighs and pauses to look at the sky before shaking her head and heading into the throne room for the day of meetings to start.

**Author's Note:**

> Alternate Universe: Mikoto escaped with her two young girls. These two young women have spent the last several years gathering allies and information on their father. This is their story to try and change their fate and restore peace to their lands.
> 
> Comments welcomed and encouraged!


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